Cult of Mac 2.0

This book attempts to pick up where the first edition left off. We’ll revisit some of

the themes explored in the first edition while exploring how Apple has changed

since the first book’s publication.

▸

You’ll see that there are still lots of people who get Apple tattoos.

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You’ll meet collectors who have amassed large private collections of Apple

devices, in some cases enough to fill their own Apple museums.

▸

You’ll read about musicians who not only make music on Apple devices but

also sing about the company.

As in the first book, a lot of these stories were first reported by my colleague David

Pierini and are gathered here as a collection for the first time.

Back in 1997, as Steve Jobs was busy saving the company, I worked with a

guy who hated Apple. He hated the fussy design, the locked-down hardware, the

one-button mouse. He hated the smiley-face startup icon. He hated being “dictated

to.” He liked his computer set up the way he wanted it, not the way Steve Jobs had

determined it should be. Because I was an Apple fan, he’d needle me about it almost

every day.

Fast forward to now, and the same guy is Apple’s biggest fan. It started with

an iPod, a gift he received for Christmas. He used it grudgingly at first, because

his girlfriend had gotten it for him and he wanted to keep her happy. But he soon

delighted in it. He especially loved shuffle play, which turned up unexpected gems

from his music collection.

Instead of teasing me about Apple and Steve Jobs, he began to rhapsodize

about his new iPod, as though I didn’t have one myself. I’d say, “Yes, Dave, I know,”

but he’d rattle on regardless. He still disliked Jobs, but he soon found himself

hanging out at the local Apple Store, eyeing the latest MacBooks. After he got his

MacBook, he ditched his beloved Android phone for an iPhone.

Now he’s all Apple, and he’s not looking back. He has the fervor of the newly

converted, like a sinner who’s found salvation at last. And he’s hardly alone. Apple

has gone from a relatively small bit player to a consumer electronics giant. Thanks

to hits like the iPod and iPhone, more and more people have joined the Cult of

Apple, even those who used to hate the company. Now there are millions of us, and

we’re all over the globe.

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