Re: WANTED: Apple III info

[Tom O'Neill <tdon@delphi.com>]

David Empson <dempson@atlantis.actrix.gen.nz> writes:
 
>In article <ciwane-0402951447250001@s157.union_roberts.haverford.edu>,
>Christopher Iwane <ciwane@haverford.edu> wrote:
 
 
 
>> For years and years I used that computer and waited for Apple to
>> release the Apple III. 
>
>Ah.  I think you got the order a little backwards.  The Apple III was
>released in 1980, and was no longer made after 1985 (or thereabouts).
>
>> I've been trying to find out whatever I can about this machine.  The only
>> think I know is that the thing obviously was dead on arrival as it's no
>> longer around.  
 
On the first 14,ooo units sold, the chips "walked " out of their slots...
picture a heavyset man literally walking on the motherboard to reseat the
chips...for another hour.
Apple eventually replaced all the motherboards for free and tried to
save the machine, but as Dave Empson has noted, the IBM PC had entered the
market place and the switch was made , probably based on the greater
reliability of those boxes...the Apple III was a good machine, but the
market chose reliablility instead...the Apple III+ came along too late...
Also, Apple had decided their marketing was going the niche route, or
vertical market route...the MAC entered the marketplace in January 1994
and was aimed at business, and the Apple III was regeared to specific
vertical markets, such as library systems, insurance, surveying,
agriculture, and various professional office management schemes (law
offices, med./dental offices, insurance offices, etc.)
 
There was a book issued by Apple late in 1984 entitled
 
_Apple III: Will Somebody Please Tell Me What an Apple Can Do?
 
This was a guide to Apple III software then on the market, complete with
names and addresses where they could be obtained...topics such as
accounting, computer languages, agriculture, database management, education,
finance, graphics, job costing, mailing lists , manufacturing, tax planning,
and etc.
 
For more info and maybe a link to Apple II I users, contact the
Washington Apple Pi User's Group
info@tcs.wap.org
 
Either Dave.Ottalini@tcs.wap.org or Seth.Mize@tcs.wap.org can help
you in re this machine...they have an active SIG and a good magazine-
type newsletter (nice and thick and crammed with goodies on the whole
kline of Apple computers) monthly.