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25 years on, Mac OS X continues to be Apple’s standard bearer
Twenty-five years ago, Steve Jobs took the stage at Macworld Expo in San Francisco and unveiled Mac OS X, ushering in a new era for the Mac and the world of desktop computing at large.
That sounds like hyperbole, but after watching the keynote for a second time—the first time was from the front row, thank you very much!—it’s remarkable what an enormous moment this was for Apple and the Mac.
It’s funny. What’s remarkable about the moment is actually how uneventful it seems. When I watch the video back, it’s almost surreal how Steve Jobs keeps doing utterly normal, boring things in Mac OS X while the crowd completely loses its collective mind. Viewed by someone without any historical context, it would seem like a cult being whipped into a frenzy by its leader.
But I was there, and I can tell you that it wasn’t that. This was the moment, after sixteen years of classic Mac OS—and let’s face it, the last five of those were pretty rough—when all the failings of the Mac were swept away and replaced with something modern, ready for the challenge of the 21st Century.
How did that work out for Apple? The keynote seems so weird now because almost everything in it is just how the Mac works, even 25 years later. Yes, interface styles have changed over time, but that moment on stage in January 2000 redefined the Mac for 25 years and counting.