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Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

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Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#61

Post by rayiner »

sergiotapia wrote: post #2

This is so beautiful and inspiring. A real legacy. Imagine a world without Apple computers pushing the envelope. We'd still be using wired mice and ugly black boxes. If only Steve Jobs had taken the traditional medicine route he would have been with us for another 50 years.

There is nothing beautiful or inspiring about a suburban office complex in the middle of nowhere. To the contrary, the Apple office park epitomizes many of the things wrong with America: turning the workplace into an island unto itself, and turning land that could be used for nature into a useless manicured lawn.

It would have been far more efficient to build the thing as a few 12-14 story buildings in the nearest city.

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#63

Post by joezydeco »

trevyn wrote: post #9

Wow, for all of Apple's perfectionism, I'm surprised the distorted reflections on the circular sunshades aren't driving someone bonkers.

I saw the same thing and thought "If Steve was here, he'd delay opening 3 months while they replaced those undershade panels".

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#64

Post by TheOtherHobbes »

SirensOfTitan wrote: post #30
sergiotapia wrote: post #2

This is so beautiful and inspiring. A real legacy. Imagine a world without Apple computers pushing the envelope. We'd still be using wired mice and ugly black boxes. If only Steve Jobs had taken the traditional medicine route he would have been with us for another 50 years.

> Imagine a world without Apple computers pushing the envelope. We'd still be using wired mice and ugly black boxes. I strongly disagree with these classes of statements. Would we not have calculus without Newton? Great ideas tend to often happen simultaneously for a reason. Building of more complex abstractions (metaphors in the context of language) allows us collectively to consider ideas that previously we could h…

Can you think of anyone else dedicated to making computer technology beautiful and easy to use?

I can't. I'm not usually a fan of the Great Man theory of history, but I literally cannot think of any individual working in electronics/computing/software with a similar set of abilities and drives.

By default, computer systems tend to be ugly and hard to use. It took someone who wasn't primarily a developer or engineer to push the field in a different direction.

There really aren't many people with entrepreneurial skills and aesthetic sense who can manage engineers in anything like the same way.

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#65

Post by ionised »

sergiotapia wrote: post #2

This is so beautiful and inspiring. A real legacy. Imagine a world without Apple computers pushing the envelope. We'd still be using wired mice and ugly black boxes. If only Steve Jobs had taken the traditional medicine route he would have been with us for another 50 years.

Someone else would have filled whatever void you believe would be there.

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#66

Post by midgetjones »

geoka9 wrote: post #26
kleptako wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We'd still be using wired mice and ugly black boxes. im pretty sure a lot of people use wired mice and have black boxes as their desktop computer case.

... and are perfectly happy doing it. Heck, I even use an "ugly black box" as my laptop (an older Lenovo thinkpad) :)

There is nothing ugly about a thinkpad!

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#67

Post by midgetjones »

nathanvanfleet wrote: post #44
gist wrote: post #41

Considering that Jobs single handedly saved Apple when he returned I would think he would get a bit more of an honor than a theater named after him.

What did you have in mind?

A 50-foot statue made of gold that shouts criticism at employees as they walk past?

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#68

Post by jpeg_hero »

Great Newspeak for their Office Building. In this "Office Building" approximately 70% of all the employees' time will be 1) writing emails and 2) having meetings in conference rooms. But instead it is "Apple Park" where work is leisure and being inside working is actually frolicking.

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#69

Post by massysett »

rayiner wrote: post #61
sergiotapia wrote: post #2

This is so beautiful and inspiring. A real legacy. Imagine a world without Apple computers pushing the envelope. We'd still be using wired mice and ugly black boxes. If only Steve Jobs had taken the traditional medicine route he would have been with us for another 50 years.

There is nothing beautiful or inspiring about a suburban office complex in the middle of nowhere. To the contrary, the Apple office park epitomizes many of the things wrong with America: turning the workplace into an island unto itself, and turning land that could be used for nature into a useless manicured lawn. It would have been far more efficient to build the thing as a few 12-14 story buildings in the nearest ci…

Equivalent 12-14 story buildings are not pleasant to work in; in particular there is far less natural light, so only the privileged managers get window light.

[edit] Plus: "It is also the site of the world’s largest naturally ventilated building, projected to require no heating or air conditioning for nine months of the year." That's probably tough to do with a box in the city.

Re: Apple Park Opens to Employees in April

#70

Post by Tiktaalik »

This building seems super wasteful landwise, but I guess it's in the sprawling silicon valley suburbs so no one really expects or cares about compactness or efficiency.

It'll likely be arduous for someone to move from one part of the building to the other, but I suppose Apple employees don't typically need to do this that much.

How long is the walk across the inner square by foot I wonder?

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