That video is underwhelming to say the least, I expected to be able to click through and navigate each product and learn about data like number of units sold, what the impact was etc…
Sort of a love/hate relationship, though. Anyone who is a seasoned Apple dev, has been incandescent with rage at Apple, at more than a few points in the relationship.
But the thing I can't forget, is the absolute torrent of derision and abuse from Apple-haters, telling me what a loser I was, for sticking with them.
Funnily enough, I've not felt like hating anyone back. Never worked for me.
15 years ago I was thinking about switching my career to a different industry altogether, just didn't know what it would be. One thing I knew was that I was so tired of building web sites and backends. Boring, repetitive, uninspiring.
Then a friend asked me to write a simple iPhone app. I had no idea what development for Apple platforms would be like...
Fast forward to 2026, I'm 57 now, still in tech, building apps for Apple platforms, still enjoying it very much.
The durability of their products still surprises me. I still own and use iPhone 11 (still it is my first iPhone when I switched from Android). Still getting latest iOS updates and functioning very well and may last for 2 more years. What other phone could do this?
I’ve had the exact opposite journey. Native apps, disillusioned and frustrated with the backwards tooling, moved on to more open platforms (web apps and backends)
I'd be interested in hearing from the Apple aficionados today what they think of Apple as it was in its beginnings (i.e. the Apple I and Apple ][) compared to how it is now.
I'm not an Apple person, but I can only wish that they would release their Apple silicon for non-Apple chassis (kinda like the original Apple I?). If I could jury-rig an Apple board into a 2010s Thinkpad I'd drop $1000 in a heartbeat. Instead they don't encourage tinkering with their hardware anymore. (The fact that they could lock it down even more is noted, but shouldn't really be praiseworthy.)
I’m a greybeard, I played Oregon trail on the II and remember the first Mac.
IMO Apple (well, Jobs) was always trying to create a sealed, perfect appliance for regular people, even in the very early days. Apple worked very hard to hide all implementation details. Hackers, on the contrary, want to see and tweak all those hidden details. The complaints today were the same in the 80s.
To his credit, Jobs finally got there. My mother is in her 70s and the iPad is the only computer she’s ever used.
Amusingly, 15 min ago, the animation did not work on my MacOS Safari (Sequoia), but it was visible on Chrome. Now (1600 UTC-4), it is animated on Safari.
All the roads around the Apple Spaceship were closed yesterday, and I was surprised I didn't see any news about announcements. Apparently they just closed the roads for their 50th birthday party?
It's a nice animation, but for such a significant anniversary - and from a company like Apple - I expected a lot more hoopla and content. This could indicate that there wasn't a lot of planning involved, that it wasn't a high-priority item, or that Apple had enough people with time to focus on it.
It's almost as if someone near the end of a meeting said "Oh crud, we've got to do something to acknowledge our 50th anniversary - can someone put something together, and quick?"
Seems to me that they are simple saying its not important:
"At 50 years, it’s only natural to look back. But Apple has always looked forward, building tools and delivering experiences that enrich people’s lives. As we celebrate how far we’ve come, we’re inspired by where we’ll go — together."
And, no, I don't think they left it to chance.
Also there's an art video to go with the art animation.
The Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh came to be regarded as such a mistake and quintessential example of how misguided Apple was during the wilderness era that I'm not surprised they went in the opposite direction. Institutional memory etc etc
It's not hard for me to imagine that performing as one of the world's most beloved rock stars, doing what you've loved for many decades, is an enjoyable way to spend your time, regardless of the paycheck.
That video is underwhelming to say the least, I expected to be able to click through and navigate each product and learn about data like number of units sold, what the impact was etc…
And in general expected more too
At least they unexpectedly released iOS and iPadOS 18.7.7 today with a DarkSword fix for people who stayed on 18 to avoid Liquid Glass.
This is the link to the video for future reference when the homepage changes back (assuming the url to the video may stay)
https://www.apple.com/105/media/us/home/2026/84ec8a66-d69d-4...
Is the entire video just scribbles of the different Apple products over the years? Pretty lackluster celebration if you ask me.
If there is one company I'd say that has made a significant (positive) difference in my life, I'd say it is Apple.
It's been my bread and butter.
Sort of a love/hate relationship, though. Anyone who is a seasoned Apple dev, has been incandescent with rage at Apple, at more than a few points in the relationship.
But the thing I can't forget, is the absolute torrent of derision and abuse from Apple-haters, telling me what a loser I was, for sticking with them.
Funnily enough, I've not felt like hating anyone back. Never worked for me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_tDj1BvEfw
Same, OSX was the only OS that worked with me when I was legally blind.
You are not alone.
15 years ago I was thinking about switching my career to a different industry altogether, just didn't know what it would be. One thing I knew was that I was so tired of building web sites and backends. Boring, repetitive, uninspiring.
Then a friend asked me to write a simple iPhone app. I had no idea what development for Apple platforms would be like...
Fast forward to 2026, I'm 57 now, still in tech, building apps for Apple platforms, still enjoying it very much.
The durability of their products still surprises me. I still own and use iPhone 11 (still it is my first iPhone when I switched from Android). Still getting latest iOS updates and functioning very well and may last for 2 more years. What other phone could do this?
I’ve had the exact opposite journey. Native apps, disillusioned and frustrated with the backwards tooling, moved on to more open platforms (web apps and backends)
If I only had to pick one I'd probably go with Monsanto.
3M
I'd be interested in hearing from the Apple aficionados today what they think of Apple as it was in its beginnings (i.e. the Apple I and Apple ][) compared to how it is now.
I'm not an Apple person, but I can only wish that they would release their Apple silicon for non-Apple chassis (kinda like the original Apple I?). If I could jury-rig an Apple board into a 2010s Thinkpad I'd drop $1000 in a heartbeat. Instead they don't encourage tinkering with their hardware anymore. (The fact that they could lock it down even more is noted, but shouldn't really be praiseworthy.)
I’m a greybeard, I played Oregon trail on the II and remember the first Mac.
IMO Apple (well, Jobs) was always trying to create a sealed, perfect appliance for regular people, even in the very early days. Apple worked very hard to hide all implementation details. Hackers, on the contrary, want to see and tweak all those hidden details. The complaints today were the same in the 80s.
To his credit, Jobs finally got there. My mother is in her 70s and the iPad is the only computer she’s ever used.
Not exactly "heres to the crazy ones" anymore eh
50 years of thinking different, more like 43 years of thinking different and 7 years of pivoting to milking the cash cow.
Amusingly, 15 min ago, the animation did not work on my MacOS Safari (Sequoia), but it was visible on Chrome. Now (1600 UTC-4), it is animated on Safari.
The animation was visible on Safari when I viewed it very early this morning (10 hours ago), and again about 3 hours ago.
Highlights from Computer History Museum's Apple at 50: Five Decades of Thinking Different event last month:
Panel included David Pogue, Chris Espinsoa, John Sculley, Avie Tevanian.
https://computerhistory.org/blog/celebrating-apple-at-50/
I see people mentioning an animation? I see only a large apple logo and some words. What else are people seeing?
(Firefox on Mac OS. Also Safari on Mac OS)
Click on the “<< REW” at the bottom. Though I haven’t tried if it works on Firefox.
No such button on my machine. Even when I disable 'reduce motion' per my other comment.
(I did try on my iPhone and the REW button is present)
The button links to: https://www.apple.com/105/media/us/home/2026/84ec8a66-d69d-4...
You won't see it if Reduced Motion is enabled in Accessibility Settings.
Thanks, that was it. Nice to see Apple respecting my UX wishes.
On my iPhone I see a 'REW' button which plays another video, but it doesn't show on my Mac.
I was expecting to see a Newton, and got an eMate 300 and a well-timed fake glitch in the audio. Seems apropos.
All the roads around the Apple Spaceship were closed yesterday, and I was surprised I didn't see any news about announcements. Apparently they just closed the roads for their 50th birthday party?
Paul McCartney played inside the ring yesterday.
It's a nice animation, but for such a significant anniversary - and from a company like Apple - I expected a lot more hoopla and content. This could indicate that there wasn't a lot of planning involved, that it wasn't a high-priority item, or that Apple had enough people with time to focus on it.
It's almost as if someone near the end of a meeting said "Oh crud, we've got to do something to acknowledge our 50th anniversary - can someone put something together, and quick?"
Seems to me that they are simple saying its not important:
"At 50 years, it’s only natural to look back. But Apple has always looked forward, building tools and delivering experiences that enrich people’s lives. As we celebrate how far we’ve come, we’re inspired by where we’ll go — together."
And, no, I don't think they left it to chance.
Also there's an art video to go with the art animation.
The Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh came to be regarded as such a mistake and quintessential example of how misguided Apple was during the wilderness era that I'm not surprised they went in the opposite direction. Institutional memory etc etc
Apple's acknowledged their anniversary for weeks, especially during the recent product launches like the Neo. It started back in mid March [0].
[0] https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2026/03/apple-to-celebrate-50...
They had a bunch of artists playing live at some Apple Stores, they even got Paul McCartney doing a concert at their HQ.
It's wild to me that at 83 years of age, he still wants to do gigs like this. Pretty sure he doesn't need the money.
It's not hard for me to imagine that performing as one of the world's most beloved rock stars, doing what you've loved for many decades, is an enjoyable way to spend your time, regardless of the paycheck.
Wow. Few more million in the bank for Macca.
Agreed
a Jobsian decision
Pretty disappointing little amateur video.
I'd like to congratulate the company on the excellent products and services they've provided and the security they offer.
Associated Tim Cook letter (from a few weeks ago): https://www.apple.com/50-years-of-thinking-different/
No acknowledgment of the Apple ][ ಠ_ಠ
The Apple seed died a long, long time ago.
Oh, Apple Vision. They still sell that, eh. (Do they?)
This webpage performs shockingly bad on my phone for a (basically) empty page with a video.
I guess it's like their phones. Got too old, slow 'er down.