Macintosh Folklore Radio

  1. Plan Be (1997)2024/02/12
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  2. The Wizards of Be, Inc. (1997)2024/01/11
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  3. The Desktop Christmas '94 (1994)2023/12/07
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  4. Trouble In Finder City (1992)/The Hard Sell (1995)2023/11/26
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  5. Life At Apple (1991)2023/11/10
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  6. Review: Infini-D 2.5.1 and StrataVision 3D 2.6.3 (1994)2023/10/20
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  7. SK8ing Down the Wrong Path (2019)2023/10/08
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  8. Basal Gangster - A/UX: The Long View (2010)2023/09/08
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  9. A/UX and MachTen: Serious UNIX for the Macintosh (1993)2023/08/20
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  10. 1988: Apple's Year In Review (1989)2023/08/01
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  11. Review: HyperCard 1.0 (1988)2023/07/01
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  12. MultiFinder 1.0 Review and Commentary (1988)2023/06/08
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  13. folklore.org: Apple II Mouse Card (1981)2023/06/01


    A spontaneous port of MacPaint to the Apple II. No vertical blanking interrupt? No problem!

    Original text by Andy Hertzfeld at folklore.org .

  14. Andy Hertzfeld on QuickerDraw (1988)2023/05/08
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  15. Landon Dyer - Eject, Eject! (1992)2023/05/01


    Landon Dyer on the joys of subversive sticker placement at Apple’s then new Infinite Loop campus.

    Original text from dadhacker.com .

    The button in question, photographed in 2013 .

  16. Behind Locked Doors - A Tour of Apple's Factory (1990)2023/04/02
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  17. They're No Angels (1990)2023/04/01
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  18. The Desktop Critic - Mac OS 8 and Why It's Great (1997)2023/03/03


    “The gang at Apple Computer does its best work when its collective back is against the wall. ” Oh 1997 David Pogue, if only you knew. :-(

    Written by David Pogue, The Desktop Critic, Macworld December 1997 .

    Clip of Apple’s Jim Gable talking about Mac OS 8 “Tempo” from the 1997 OS Strategy VHS tape , feat. cheesy music.

  19. The Iconoclast - Is That All There Is? (1992)2023/02/03
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  20. folklore.org: Mea Culpa (2004)2023/01/07
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  21. Verbatim - Interview with Andy Hertzfeld (1987)2022/12/11
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  22. Landon Dyer - Sorry I Almost Got You Fired (1989)2022/11/24
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  23. Landon Dyer - Flash Memories (1992)2022/11/04


    Of Newton MessagePad data store resilience and Mars Rover reboot loops.

    Written by Landon Dyer at dadhacker.com in 2004.

    Excerpt of Steve Capps (ex-Newton) and Donna Dubinsky, former CEO of Palm and ex-Claris VP, from the Computer History Museum’s Computing In Your Pocket panel discussion .

  24. Chris MacAskill - Steve Jobs, AutoCAD, and Focus Groups (1991)2022/10/18
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  25. Conspicuous Consumer - Smart Company, Foolish Choices (1992)2022/09/20
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  26. Review: Envisio Notebook Display Adapter (1992)2022/09/01
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  27. PowerBook 100 Series Introduction (1991)2022/08/01
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  28. Outbound and Gagged (1991)2022/07/01
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  29. Review: Outbound Laptop System (1990)2022/06/16


    From the days before the hot-selling PowerBook 100 series, David Pogue reviews a sleeker, less expensive alternative to Apple’s 1989 Macintosh Portable.

    Original text from Macworld, September 1990 .

    Enjoy some gorgeous photos of the original Outbound Laptop System from applerooter.net .

  30. Review: NuTek Duet Macintosh Clone (1994)2022/05/20
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  31. Send In The Clones (1991)2022/04/23
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  32. What Comes Together Falls Apart (1985)2022/04/16


    InfoWorld (13-May-1985) profiles Andy Hertzfeld one year after his departure from Apple. Original text by Kevin Strehlo.

  33. folklore.org: PCB Aesthetics/Diagnostic Port (1981)2022/04/01
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  34. NeXT Cube Serial Number AA001032 (1993)2022/03/01


    Burn a NeXT Cube, they said. It’ll be easy, they said.

    Original text from Simson Garfinkel . Simson maintains a complete NeXTWorld archive on his website .

    Photos from the actual burning .

    Rich Page quote from Part 1 of his CHM Oral History .

    CHM interview with Dan Ruby, NeXTWORLD Magazine’s driving force and editor-in-chief .

  35. Steve Hayman - NeXT's Black Monday (1993)/The Merger (1996)2022/02/05
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  36. A Suit In Time (1992)2022/01/13
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  37. Don Melton - Memories of Steve (2013)2021/12/13
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  38. Wise Guy - Give and You Might Receive (1994)2021/11/24
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  39. Interview with Chris Espinosa (2000)2021/10/30
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  40. folklore.org: Calculator Construction Set (1982)2021/10/29


    Chris Espinosa tries to build a Steve Jobs-approved calculator.

    Original text from folklore.org .

    My favourite classic MacOS calculator was ProCalc . While trying to find ProCalc, I found PowerCalc by John Mauro who went on to co-invent Gorilla Glass , used in every iPhone and iPad.

  41. folklore.org: Do It (1982)2021/10/22


    Testing software on real world users often yields surprising results.

    Origin of the Apple Human Interface Guidelines video with Chris Espinosa reading Bruce Tognazzini’s “Apple Presents Apple ” user testing post-mortem.

    Original text from folklore.org .

  42. folklore.org: Inside Macintosh (1982)2021/10/08
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  43. Adrian Mello - Name That Macintosh (1993)2021/09/23


    Apple’s marketing poets meet Mercedes-Benz, Latin, and Sylvester Stallone.

    Original text from Macworld Magazine, August 1993 .

  44. Interview with Eric Harslem (1992)2021/09/03
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  45. Wise Guy - The Akihabara Syndrome (1993)2021/08/27


    Guy boils down your Macintosh purchase decision to three choices from Apple’s bloated 1993 product lineup.

    Apple has arguably suffered from The Ginza Syndrome(tm) since the days of the Apple II. :-)

    Original text from Macworld Magazine, June 1993 .

  46. Wise Guy - The F-15 vs the Quadra 800 (1993)2021/08/20
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  47. Wise Guy - Words of Wisdom (1993)2021/08/13
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  48. Wise Guy - The Macintosh Home Office (1994)2021/08/07
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  49. Claris Redux (1992)2021/07/17
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  50. folklore.org: What Hath Woz Wrought (1979)2021/07/08


    Andy Hertzfeld’s first task as an employee of Apple Computer.

    Original text from folklore.org .

  51. Bob Hearn - A Brief History of ClarisWorks (2003)2021/06/21
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  52. folklore.org: Quick, Hide In This Closet! (1983)2021/05/30


    Steve Jobs temporarily forbid the Macintosh team from working with Sony.

    Original text from folklore.org .

    Bill Gates Twiggy drive clip from All Things D5, 2007 , 3m54s. Alternate source .

  53. Code and Dagger (1990)2021/05/07


    The FBI’s attempted investigation of the nuPrometheus League.

    I wish there was a dramatic conclusion to this 1990 editorial, but we’ve heard nothing from the nuPrometheus League since their first and only dispatch.

    Original text from Macworld Magazine, September 1990 .

  54. The Dirt on Apple Security (1989)2021/04/15
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  55. The First Macintosh Clone (1989)2021/04/01


    Steven Levy on a little-known Macintosh clone project from 1989. Original text from Macworld Magazine, April 1989 .

    Our sponsor for April 1st: The Mac Zone !

  56. Duo Trouble (1993)2021/03/07
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  57. David Pogue - PowerBook Duo and Duo Dock Review (1993)2021/02/15


    David Pogue reviews the PowerBook Duo 210/230 and the companion Duo Dock. NuBus and SCSI weren’t hot pluggable, meaning you had to shut down the machine every time you docked or undocked!

    Original text from Macworld Magazine, March 1993 .

    PowerBook Duo Dock sounds courtesy of the RetroMacCast on YouTube (insert , eject ).

  58. folklore.org - Macintosh Launch Day 3-Pack (1984)2021/01/22
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  59. Interviews with StuffIt Creator Raymond Lau (1996/1998)2021/01/03
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  60. The Road to Power Macintosh (1994)2020/12/02
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  61. folklore.org: Black Wednesday2020/11/01


    A shakeup in Apple II engineering frees up Andy Hertzfeld to work on the Macintosh.

    Original text from folklore.org .
    Jef Raskin and Andy Hertzfeld audio excerpts from “The Macintosh at 20” panel hosted at Macworld Boston 2004 . Highly recommended!

  62. Why Did Apple Kill Newton? (1998)2020/10/03
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  63. Scrooge McDuck (1980)2020/09/13


    The very first image displayed on the very first prototype Macintosh, an Apple II expansion card with a Motorola 6809E.

    Original text at folklore.org .

    Audio excerpts from Andy Hertzfeld’s keynote speech at the O’Reilly Open Source Convention (OSCON) 2000. Listen to the full keynote , preserved in 2004 by yours truly from a long-gone RealAudio streaming server.

  64. MFR Housekeeping 20202020/08/28


    “Mask ROM” means something a little different in 2020.

    E-mail your article and topic suggestions to derek at macfolkloreradio.com.

  65. Newton MessagePad 2000 Review (1997)2020/08/24


    Surf the Web, deal with e-mail, crunch spreadsheets, write real documents, and keep your life together with this 1.4-pound wonder.

    Written by Jeff Pittelkau, MacUser June 1997 .

  66. The Palmtop Blues (1995)2020/08/10


    Of Newton and Magic Link, Marco and Envoy. The Newton and its competition continue to make progress… sort of.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld April 1995 .

  67. Not Ready for Prime Time (1994)2020/07/14


    Newton will be great if it can live down its beginnings.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld January 1994 .

    Audio from the Newton TV Commercial Collection .

  68. Patching the Newton (1993)2020/07/01
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  69. Newton Storage History (1993)2020/06/25


    Landon Dyer describes how he made the Newton storage architecture crash-resistant at the last minute before the Newton shipped.

    Original text from dadhacker.com .

  70. The Story of Tetris Max2020/05/27
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  71. MFR Chat Room2020/05/15


    Join the MFR discord : https://discord.gg/WB4tJHw

    Create a free account and verify your e-mail address to start chatting.

  72. Glory Days (1989)2020/05/02
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  73. Douglas Adams - Pathways and Relationships (1987)2020/04/19


    Douglas Adams’ delightfully irreverent take on HyperCard from MacUser December 1987 .

  74. Douglas Adams - Under-the-Desktop Publishing (1991)2020/04/07


    As elegant and intuitive as the classic Mac environment may have been, life went downhill fast if you needed more than two serial ports or your SCSI chain went south. The one and only Douglas Adams shares a personal horror story. Source: MacUser, November 1991 .

    [Full text available at Douglas’ website][html].

  75. Burrell Smith on Design - Doug Clapp Interview (1992)2020/03/22


    From Doug Clapp’s The Macintosh Reader , PDF page 171-176, a rare interview with original Macintosh hardware designer/wizard Burrell Smith. An extra special thanks to vintageapple.org for scanning and uploading this and many other old Macintosh books .

    Burrell’s contrary statement on PC Board Aesthetics at folklore.org .

  76. Burrell Smith 3-Pack (1979-1981)2020/03/18


    A bonus episode to keep my tiny listener base company while they’re stuck inside because of you-know-what. Stay safe.

    From folklore.org: I’ll Be Your Best Friend , We’ll See About That , and Pineapple Pizza .

    Interview with Collette Askeland, PCB design and layout sorceress, at Drop III Inches .

  77. Sound By Monday (1982)2020/03/07


    Steve Jobs threatens to pull the sound hardware out of the original Macintosh design.

    Original text available at folklore.org .

    Download SoundLab, Talk Demo, and Hendrix at Macintosh Garden .

  78. Larry Tesler on the Legacy of the Lisa (1985)2020/02/21


    R.I.P. Larry Tesler, 1945-2020. With audio from Larry’s presentation on the development and testing of the Lisa user interface , and Bill Atkinson speaking about making modal interfaces useful .

    You can hear more about Larry’s days at Apple from the Steve Jobs Legacy Panel, 2011 .

    Written by Larry Tesler, Macworld September 1985 .

  79. Meditations on HyperCard (1988)2020/02/16
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  80. The Ultimate BMUG Thursday Night (1988)2020/01/25


    A humorous look at a typical Macintosh User Group meeting.

    Written by Ted Jones, BMUG Newsletter Summer/Fall 1988.

    Text available in [HTML][html] and [ePub][epub] format.

  81. Tales of the MultiFinder (1988)2020/01/12


    Behind Apple’s first multitasking system software is a controversy that cuts to Apple’s core.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld January 1988 .

  82. The Desktop Christmas (1992)2019/12/12


    David Pogue’s Macintosh holiday gift guide.

    Written by David Pogue, The Desktop Critic, Macworld December 1992 .

  83. The Plunge (1987)2019/12/09


    You know you want a Macintosh II. But wouldn’t it be wiser to wait?

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld November 1987 .

  84. Turkey, Stuffing, and Interchangeable Power Cords (1996)2019/11/10


    The little things that Macintosh pilgrims can be thankful for.

    Written by David Pogue, The Desktop Critic, Macworld November 1996 .

  85. John Carmack on the Steve Jobs Rollercoaster2019/11/02


    The co-founder of id Software shares his collection of Steve Jobs stories. Published by John Carmack at F—book .

    Audio from the Macworld San Francisco 2000 keynote , October 1999 iMac DV launch event , and WWDC 2007 keynote .

  86. A Secret Call to Andy Grove (1991)2019/10/13


    The grassroots, cloak-and-dagger effort that brought NeXT and Intel together. Written by Chris MacAskill at cake.co .

    Intro audio from Steve Jobs’ 2010 appearance at All Things D with Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg.

  87. That Vision Thing (1991)2019/09/15


    An in-depth look at the beginning of Apple mismanaging itself into oblivion in the early 1990s.

    Written by Cheryl England, Macworld September 1991 . Fun fact: Cheryl England founded MacAddict magazine in 1996.

    Audio from the Computer Chronicles’ coverage of Macworld Boston 1996.
    Steve Jobs inventory management quote from the WWDC 1999 keynote.

  88. The Soul of a New Macintosh (1990)2019/08/21


    The twisted tale of the Macintosh LC, or “how Apple did almost everything it could to stay out of the entry-level computer market”.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld December 1990 .

  89. MFR Housekeeping (2019)2019/07/21


    Some stats to celebrate MFR 2.0’s first birthday.

    I welcome your old-time Mac stories and reading requests by e-mail: derek at macfolkloreradio.com

    An iTunes podcast directory review or star rating would also be nice. Think of it as paying your shareware fee. :-)

  90. Adventures in the RAM Trade (1989)2019/07/18


    The worldwide DRAM shortage of 1988 encourages back-door deals and money grubbing.

    Audio clips from The Computer Chronicles (Laptop Peripherals, 1988) and the Macintosh IIcx product introduction (Jean-Louis Gassee, March 7, 1989) .

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld January 1989 .

  91. The Making of the Macintosh II (1987)2019/06/30


    A backstage look at the creation of the Macintosh II and the unsung heroes who designed it.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld May 1987 .

  92. The Test of Time (1994)2019/05/20


    Ten years on, a look at why some software is still standing, and why other products have died off. From the Macworld 10th anniversary issue .

    Written by David Pogue, The Desktop Critic, Macworld February 1994 .

  93. The Not-So-Great Compromise (1990)2019/04/14


    The trials and tribulations of working with Apple’s first portable Macintosh. Audio excerpt from the Macintosh Portable press event in 1990 .

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld March 1990 .

  94. Mac Surgery (1989)2019/04/01


    David Pogue goes through the harrowing process of installing an accelerator board in a compact Mac.

    Text available in [HTML][html] and [ePub][epub] formats.

  95. Switcher (1984)2019/03/15


    The story of the Macintosh’s very first multitasking environment as told by the programmer himself, Andy Hertzfeld, at folklore.org.

    Audio excerpt from the “Macintosh at 20” panel hosted at Macworld Boston 2004. Highly recommended!

    Full text available at folklore.org .

  96. Bill Atkinson on Joining Apple Computer 40 Years Ago (2018)2019/02/12


    Bill Atkinson, well-known for QuickDraw, MacPaint, and HyperCard, reflects on the 40th anniversary of his start at Apple.

    Audio excerpt from the Churchill Club’s 2011 event discussing the legacy of Steve Jobs .

    Text available at folklore.org .

  97. Can a Plus Be a Minus? (1986)2019/01/15


    Taking the upgrade path is costly and confusing but ultimately satisfying. Steven Levy documents his upgrade journey from a Macintosh 512k to a Mac Plus.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld October 1986 .

  98. Hello Again (MFR Housekeeping)2018/12/14


    Welcome back, Mac Folklore Radio Listeners–both of you. Some rambling from your podcast host after a nine year absence.

    Thanks again to vintageapple.org and the mysterious “SteveM” for all the new reading material.

  99. The Desktop Christmas (1993)2018/12/10


    Cheap and cheery gifts to put under the Apple tree.

    Written by David Pogue, The Desktop Critic, Macworld December 1993 .

  100. A Shut and Open Case (1987)2018/11/27


    How “unauthorized” modifications to the Mac became commonplace.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld January 1987 .

  101. Defying Gravity (1993)2018/10/25


    The DiskDoubler Story: How to succeed by really trying.

    Written by Guy Kawasaki, Wise Guy, Macworld December 1993 .

  102. The Goal of a New Machine (1993)2018/10/01


    Guy Kawasaki’s take on the PDA: the Personal Telephone Assistant.

    Written by Guy Kawasaki, Wise Guy, Macworld September 1993 .

  103. The NeXT Best Thing (1989)2018/09/16


    Journalists are summoned to a preview of the NeXT cube.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld March 1989 .

  104. Look Mac, No Hands! (1995)2018/08/02


    One man’s quest to eliminate the keyboard.

    Written by David Pogue, The Desktop Critic, Macworld August 1995 .

  105. The Meaning of Slow (1991)2018/06/14


    Passing the time with Apple’s StyleWriter.

    Written by Steven Levy, The Iconoclast, Macworld December 1991 .

Mac Folklore Radio
https://macfolkloreradio.com
Comfort food for Macintosh users of the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s.