end, he insisted that the computer should be housed in a molded
plastic case, which, at the time, was more expensive than metal
or wood. But, he believed it would make the machine look sleek
and modern. Then, he hired industrial designer Jerry Manock to
redesign Apple II to fit his vision. He also prodded Woz to give
the computer a lightweight power supply that did not need cool-
ing. This would eliminate the need for a fan, making the machine
quieter. Finally, he hired an advertising firm to come up with the
colorful Apple logo, which has become so recognizable. Then,
he kept the firm on to launch an advertising campaign for Apple,
which included an ad in Playboy Magazine.
Doing all this required more money than Apple had. Jobs went
to banks, Atari, and Hewlett Packard looking for an investor. His
youth, long hair, and hippie attire did not instill confidence in the
business people he propositioned, and he was repeatedly turned
down. Finally, he met Mike Markkula. Markkula was a thirty-
four-year-old retiree, who had made millions of dollars working
as a marketing executive for Intel, the computer chip manufac-
turer. An individualist himself, he was able to look beyond Jobs’s
appearance. When Jobs told him about Apple II and his vision
for the future, Markkula was hooked. He provided Apple with
$92,000, in exchange for a third of the company. As part of his
role at Apple, Markkula developed a business plan, which was
vital to getting the company off the ground. From the start, he
said he would stay with Apple for only four years, and then he
would go back into retirement.
The West Coast Computer Faire
In order to get Apple II finished in time for the April 1977 West
Coast Computer Faire, Apple added more employees, many of
whom worked round the clock. The machine was worth the
effort. It was the first easy to use computer ever made. It had
color, high-resolution graphics, sound, and a place to attach game
paddles. It was also the first computer to have a programming
language built into it. For years to come, other computer manu-
facturers copied it.
“We Will Have a Company”
49