I’m typing this on my Apple iBook (which I’ll soon replace), and the first computer I ever used was also an Apple - the Apple II.
I was still a tiny kid then, and the only command I can remember from then is “CATALOG”, which would display the list of games on the diskette. No mouse and windows then - everything was in text. Green text.
And I would remember the nights watching my dad open up the plastic casing of the Apple II and do stuff with the motherboard. And I still remember the green motherboard with neat rows of microchips.
It would be many years later before I learnt about the genius behind the design of that motherboard: Steve Wozniak.
As I learnt more and more about Woz from different sources, including hearing and even attending some of his talks, it was hard not to admire him - he’s one of the best hackers ever (the good kind of hacker).
So when his autobiography appeared, I had to read it:
Turns out that we have quite a lot in common. (Okay, he’s a lot smarter than I am.)
Besides being a geek (a few leagues above me), he’s also a major prankster.
Like one time when he made this device in 12th grade that looked like a bomb and made a ticking sound and he put it in his friend’s locker.
He was soon hauled into the vice principal’s office
I knew I was in big trouble, and finally they sat me down with the principal, and the vice principal, the counselor, the dean, and two police officers. And the principal starts telling me how the English teacher, Mr. Stottlemeier, had heard a ticking sound in the locker. The principal, Mr. Bryld, told me how he opened the locker, clutched the device to his chest, and then ran all the way out to the football field and dismantled it!
I started laughing, even though I was trying not to , so then I tried to cough to cover it up. But I couldn’t even do that, because I knew that I rigged [it so that it would] start ticking faster when someone opened up the locker door.
Reminds me of the times I got hauled to the vice principal’s and principal’s offices. But that’s another story.
Another story which make me snigger uncontrollably was how he manipulated people using a device that could interfere with TV signals. Read the book to find out more.
But he’s really a good guy - one of those rare people who don’t turn evil when there’s money involved. Like how he sold many of his Apple shares cheaply to those who contributed to Apple’s success even though they weren’t with Apple when they went public - it was the largest IPO ever then.
Although I really enjoyed the book, I’m not sure if everone would appreciate it as much as I did. I suppose you need to be interested in Apple and computer history. And a few parts of it can be quite technical - you need to know computer engineering to fully appreciate those parts (I’m not exaggerating) - especially when he tries to explain the elegance of his engineering designs.
Then again, if you want insight into the mind of a playful genius with a good heart, this might be worth checking out.
