Origin of the Apple logo. The creator of the Apple logo about the myths about the color symbol of the company: “Many stories are more interesting than my logical explanation

On the keyboard of almost any apple (and not only) device, you can type the Apple logo. Agree, Pay and Music looks much cooler than plain text! In addition, this way you can reduce the amount of text by 4 characters, which can be critical when writing a post for Twitter or Instagram.

If you have a Mac, then you probably already noticed that there is no shortcut for the Apple icon on its keyboard. However, it's not that hard to get it.

Character encoding

The Apple logo symbol displays correctly on all iPhones, iPads, iPod touches, Macs, Apple TVs, and Apple Watches. On iOS, macOS, and you can print it, but on watchOS in dictation or drawing mode, you will not be able to get it.

On third-party platforms and browsers like Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft Edge, the symbol may appear as a blank square, a strange icon, or something else entirely.

It's not Apple's fault.

Both the Apple and Windows logos are part of the extended character sets because corporate logos cannot be in the standard Unicode set. Due to limited implementation, such characters may not be readable on other platforms.

In ASCII encoding, the Apple logo corresponds to the following values:

• Decimal code: 240
• Hex code: F0
• Unicode: U+F8FF

1. Make sure the Num Lock key is active, press and hold the left Alt key
2. On the numeric keypad, enter 0 2 4 0

Important: Mandatory to enter 0 at the beginning, although in Unicode the decimal code for this character is simply 240.

Don't worry if your laptop doesn't have a numeric keypad, you can still enter special characters. For this:

1. Open the document where you want to add the Apple logo
2. Enter on the keyboard F 8 F F
3. Click Alt X

The Apple logo will appear at the location of the document where the cursor is.

Note that entering characters through alt will not work if the selected font does not provide a graphic representation of the desired character. If this is your case, but you still need this character, just type it in a different font (Baskerville Old Face will do), copy and paste it anywhere in your document.

HTML

The Apple logo and any other special characters can be used in blog posts and web pages using HTML. To do this, enter the value of the character in Unicode - in our case it is F8FF.

Thus, to use the Apple logo on a web page, you need to enter the following in the HTML editor:

In the preview mode, you will see that the symbol  has appeared in place of the code.

When did the Apple logo appear?

The symbol that Wayne came up with for his company has nothing to do with the current logo.. It was a carefully crafted picture, in which Isaac Newton occupied the main place, an apple was located on top, it symbolized insight. Much later, Apple will remember Newton when it develops the first PDAs.

On the first Apple logo, small words are inscribed, if you look closely, you can read " Newton… A Mind Forever Voyaging Through Strange Seas of Thought … Alone", which can be translated into Russian as " Newton... The mind is always sailing through many seas of thought... alone". This paragraph was borrowed from a fairly well-known poem in the West by William Wordsworth called "Prelude".

Indeed, the symbol turned out to be very sensible. All these mysterious references to Isaac Newton gave the logo a certain veil of mystery. However, this logo was not suitable for modern business. It is for this reason that a year after the founding of Apple, Steve Jobs decided to find a completely new symbol. So he went to a great designer named Rob Janoff. Steve Jobs gave the task to create such an emblem so that it looks modern and at the same time is perfectly recognizable among many similar ones.

During the week, this graphic designer was fully occupied with the task at hand. Many years later, he was interviewed in which he revealed the secret of how he came up with this logo. Rob went to the store, where he bought apples of various shades, then he put them in a vase and began to draw. Gradually removing various elements. That very bite was drawn by him quite deliberately, because his task was to portray such an image of a fruit so that it was strongly associated with an apple, and not, say, with berries, vegetables or fruits. Moreover, in English, the word byte and bite off are written almost the same way (byte / bite), which added even more meaning.

Myths about the appearance of the Apple logo

Second legend. It is believed that an apple painted in rainbow colors is a kind of tribute to A. Turing. This man is famous for being able to hack Enigma cipher and Kriegsmarine, and after the war had a strong influence on the development of information technology. For example, he came up with a special test for intelligence, which later became known as Turing test.
However, even here there were no pederasts. In the West, without this, there is nowhere to go, universal pederasty. So, it turns out that Turing was gay and the authorities began to persecute him for homosexuality, and a not very bright future awaited him. After all, serving two years in prison, where every convict knows about your inclinations, is not very similar to a walk through a flowering meadow. As a result, he was forced to undergo hormone therapy, as a result of which many women's breasts grow and infertility occurs. Moreover, the tolerant authorities forbade this talented pederast from doing his favorite thing. No, in this case, it means not love games with men, but cryptography.
This was a cruel blow to the fragile and tender soul of the scientist gay. As a result of mental anguish, he committed suicide after a while. Yes, being a pederast in the West is a thankless task, and sometimes dangerous for the psyche. What's with the apple, you ask? The thing is that Turing decided to leave this disgusting life in an unusual way. After all, pederasts are creative people. So he bought an apple from the store and injected a lethal dose of potassium cyanide into it, after which he bit off it with appetite. However, alas, he did not have time to chew this juicy piece.

However, Rob Yanov has his own opinion on these legends. He believes that there is no double bottom in the Apple logo. The rainbow symbol of the company was supposed to personify the fact that their company is engaged in the development and production of computers, moreover, with color monitors. At that blessed time, the screen of Mac computers had the ability to transmit six shades. These colors are included in Apple logo. Moreover, all the shades were set in random order, and only the green color was placed first by Rob on purpose.

This rainbow logo has existed for twenty-two years.. After the "prodigal son" Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1998, who had previously been expelled in disgrace, positive changes began. In those distant times, this corporation had very big problems with money. Most of Apple's competitors were asleep and saw that this firm was about to go under. In order to survive, it was necessary to radically change the company's policy.
And you ask, what kind of miracle helped pull a dying company back to life? And everyone was saved by a wonderful designer, whose name was Jonathan Ive. He created the latest case for the brand new IMAC G3.

This mac pulled Apple out of the financial abyss and opened up new horizons for it. In addition, from that moment on, this company was noticed at the highest level, its logo began to be used in glossy magazines, TV shows and films.
It became clear that the "rainbow apple" logo on the Macintosh g3 would look very strange. Therefore, reluctantly, the company's leaders decided to rebrand and make a new design. Therefore, starting in 1998, instead of the color emblem of the "bitten apple", a monochrome logo appeared. So the company passed the threshold of childhood and became adult and strong, and nothing seems to shake its unshakable confidence, except perhaps the "Financial Apocalypse".

The evolution of the Apple logo

Secret meanings that do not exist. Some associate a bitten apple with original sin. According to another version, the logo was created in memory of the founder of computer science, Alan Turing, who died with a bitten apple in his hand. Despite this, the designer who designed the logo has a rational explanation for this choice.

Specialist Rob Yanov, who created the color Apple logo, told Logo Design Love why the company's 1977 logo looked the way it did.

1977 Apple logo creator Rob Yanov

Logo Design Love: Is the Apple logo the best thing you've ever designed?

Rob Yanov: Yes, nothing compares to this job.

Have you ever asked Jobs why he named the company Apple?

Honestly, no. I know that for a while Steve ate only fruit. Then he lived on a ranch or farm in Northern California and ran an apple orchard (he considered apples to be the perfect food). He had a list with ideas on how to name the company, and he had to choose one in order to sign all the documents the next day. The name Apple was at the top of the list, and the founders of the company could not think of anything better. Jobs and Wozniak chose the name despite the threat of a lawsuit from Apple Records.

Why is the apple bitten?

Like many stories, the “legend” of the bite has been retold and changed many times. I created the silhouette of an apple, but it needed to be distinguished from other round fruits. Then I did what everyone does with an apple - I “bite” it. It's funny that 10 years after the creation of the logo, I began to meet stories about why the apple is not whole. Admittedly, many of these stories are more interesting than my logical explanation. The fact that people believe in mystery stories tells me that the Apple brand means more to them than just love for the company's devices.

How did Jobs react to the presentation of the logo?

He just smiled, nodded, and didn't say anything. I did not have to describe my idea for a long time, we both liked it.

You said that the logo consisted of colored stripes to represent the full color of Apple monitors. How did the audience take it?

The multi-colored stripes did illustrate the main difference between Apple and the competition, but they served another function. My biggest challenge was designing a logo that showed that the computer was "welcoming" enough to be brought home and used by the family. While (in 1977 - ed.) computers evoked rather negative associations. I wanted to create a positive connection with Apple devices.

Apple II computer released in 1977

How do you think, what contribution to the company's success did its logo make?

The success of the company was that Steve Jobs knew well what people needed from technology even before they knew about it. He developed very high quality standards and the design of the products was also very important. Therefore, it seems to me that the logo did not play a big role in the success of the company. People love the Apple brand name because they love Apple's technology. If they didn’t like the brand name, they wouldn’t stick it on the rear window of the car.

The origin of logos and names of well-known companies is sometimes very simple, and sometimes quite mysterious. Any person who is close to the automotive theme knows that the co-owner from the French side offered to name the Mercedes company in honor of his daughter. Some concerns do not bother with some ingenious ideas and put on the logo a word that completely repeats the name - take Coca-Cola for example.

And there are icons used for the logo, which at first glance have nothing to do with the product or with the founder. For example, Apple: how is the fruit related to mobile phones or computer programs? Yes, and was not seen in a special passion for apples.

A bit of history about the name and logo

Initially named companies - "Apple Computer" - the concern was engaged in the first years only in the production of home hardware and programs for it. It was Steve Jobs who suggested this combination of words, and later again he insisted on a joint decision with his namesake and co-owner in order to leave only "Apple".

At first, the logo was a tree from which, according to a well-known myth, a fruit fell on Newton's head, then it was replaced by a multi-colored apple, then the coloring was changed, leaving only a gray background. Now the silvery apple proudly flaunts on the cases of desktop computers, phones and tablets around the world.

Apple's success is permanent

The company still, despite the ups and downs over the long history of its existence, firmly holds the first place in terms of market capitalization (prices of all shares) - a staggering figure, exceeding $530 billion.

Troubles in the life of the owners of Apple, 1981 for Steve Wozniak almost became the last in his life due to an accident, or recent events when a huge number of products could not stand the warranty period - nothing could undermine the concern's triumphant path to victory over competitors. Apple, like a ruthless shark, swallowed up many serious companies, a vivid example of this was 2014, when Beats Electronics was almost forcibly merged into the company for a ridiculous $3 billion.

Even the death of Steve Jobs, which caused a panic in the global electronics market, could not deal a strong blow to the concern. Neither Microsoft nor Google, the most implacable enemies of Apple, although they are stepping on the heels of the "apple", can not overtake the company in terms of popularity and the number of products sold.

Several versions of the origin of the logo

Steve Jobs was during his lifetime, on the one hand, a rather boring person (no high-profile scandals and skeletons in the closet), on the other hand, tabloids greedy for scandals constantly tried to debunk this "dullness" and get to the bottom of something in order to dispel the ideal image of a father -Founder of Apple. The origin of the name and logo is still especially tormenting the minds of thirsty sensations.

Adding fuel to the slowly smoldering fire of mystery and Jobs himself. One of his official answers to the question about the origin of the logo is that he chose this fruit as a tribute to Jeff Raskin, the head of the Macintosh, whom he replaced in office in the 80s of the last century (Jeff himself named the concern after his favorite apple variety).

Another version, voiced by Jobs, is very banal, although it coincided with the first Apple logo picture: an apple that landed on the head and pushed him to discover the famous law.

There have been other speculations of those wishing to decipher the mysterious Apple icon, funny or funny. For example, an anonymous source leaked information to the media that Jobs loves cheap apple juice in a paper bag with a large image of fruit on the label, but is embarrassed to admit it.

There were rumors that Steve had a permanent vitamin deficiency, and he was prescribed by doctors to eat at least one apple a day, and that he constantly carried them in his pocket, periodically taking them out, biting off a piece and putting it back.

Any of the versions looked plausible, but far-fetched. The owner of Apple actually told both relatives and the media why he chose the apple, but he really did not like it when attention was focused on this option, even the question of the origin of the logo was regularly withdrawn at press conferences.

Why a bitten apple?

The genius of computer technology, Steve Jobs, never hid that the talent of an English mathematician who died under tragic and mysterious circumstances most of all influenced the choice of his activity.

According to Jobs, his idol was undeservedly convicted and actually killed, and even the posthumous recognition of his innocence does not expiate the guilt of the British before world science. It is Turing, most likely, that Apple owes the fact that the apple is now recognizable all over the world.

It is difficult to describe in a nutshell what a huge contribution this person made to the field of mathematics, logic and cryptography. "Turing machine" - an abstract computing device, officially recognized as the predecessor of a stationary computer.

Working during the Second World War in the secret department of British intelligence, Turing was engaged in the study and breaking of German ciphers. What was the impact on the German encryption system Enigma worth - it was developed in Germany in 1918, first used in banks, and during the war it was used to encrypt messages from the navy. Before Turing, Enigma was recognized as ideal in terms of protection - it was believed that it was impossible to crack it. Even when the Germans realized that the Enigma had been broken and improved the codes, Turing made them easy to read again after a couple of months.

Although the scientist was deeply apolitical, despite his work in intelligence, he was not bypassed by the Cold War after the end of the First World War. It was rumored that the bastions of Soviet ciphers, which Turing began to work on declassifying, were about to fall. Successful at work, Alan was very secretive and modest in everyday life, nothing was known about his personal life until a stupid incident in 1952, when his house was robbed.

It turned out that broke into Alan's house ... a friend of his lover. It turns out that a talented mathematician is a homosexual, a shame for a highly moral prudish England! Now it is not surprising when the queen awards the title of lord to people of non-standard sexual orientation (example, singer), and in those years the laws of the great empire were merciless: arrest, complete deprivation of titles and rights.

Turing was taken into custody, he was charged with obscenity (under this name in the English code of procedure homosexuality was listed). The punishment was to be chosen by the accused himself - a long-term prison or freedom, but with the condition of forced castration. Turing chose the latter.

Unemployed, completely excommunicated from science, broken physically and morally, Alan, and before that not very sociable, renounced the outside world and lived alone, communicating only with his mother. Just two years after his release from custody, he was found dead, with a bitten apple lying on the floor next to him, stuffed with a lethal dose of cyanide.

The official version is suicide, but why such a clever way to commit suicide? The mother of the deceased tried to get the case reviewed, claiming that her son shared interesting information with her shortly before his death: allegedly, the "long hand of Moscow" offered him a move to the USSR and work there. Alan, according to his mother, refused immediately, and his death is the revenge of the Reds for their intractability.

In 2009, Alan Turing was rehabilitated by the British government, Prime Minister Gordon Brown even brought him a public posthumous apology. Steve Jobs told friends and family many times that the untimely death of this genius dealt an irreparable blow to science, and that the cyanide apple set back the development of computer technology for a long time. Jobs was never seen with a strange sexual orientation, but he was liberal about people like Turing.

Here is a fact that also speaks in favor of the fact that it was the apple that brought death to the English homosexual mathematician that was taken as the prototype of the Apple logo: at first it was multi-colored. Beautiful, but only one embarrassing nuance - the combination of these iridescent colors is still the emblem of homosexuals.

At the urging of colleagues (“We are losing the market among the opponents of homosexuality!”), Steve Jobs agreed at first to the black version. From 1998 to 2001, the famous apple was charcoal, but looked gloomy, and it was decided to repaint it in a silver shade.

Few people know, but the photo above is the real Apple logo.

Apple's main symbol has been updated several times already. The change of the logo is a kind of checkpoint, marking the transition to new views and principles of the company. Moreover, these changes were never random.

Do you remember the old company logos? Let's figure it out.

Newton logo (1976 - 1977)

The first Apple logo is far from a modern laconic symbol. By and large, he stood out in those days. The logo was created by one of the founders of Apple - Ronald Wayne, who quickly sold his stake in the company. The idea is cool - to use the replicated story about the discovery of gravity by Isaac Newton. But its implementation leaves much to be desired.

Minimalism? No, we haven't heard. The logo is more like a coat of arms: a shield, a heraldic ribbon, a grandiloquent signature. Absolutely not suitable for application to products, and all because of its bulky geometry and an abundance of small details. Fortunately, he did not last long.

Rainbow logo (1977 - 1998)

An ambitious company needs a recognizable symbol. That's why the founders of Apple turned to designer Rob Janoff of Regis McKenna. It was he who created the widely known bitten apple in iridescent colors.

In an interview, the designer said that he simply bought a bag of apples and experimented with them for a week. Many hoax fans like to attribute hidden meanings to this logo. But Rob Janoff debunked all the myths, according to him, he did not make any references to Alan Turing or to the Garden of Eden:

• stripes of all colors of the rainbow speak of the competitive advantage of Apple computers that could display a color image;
• the wrong order of these colors is justified by the fact that the leaf from the apple should be green;
• the fruit was “bitten” in order not to confuse the apple with other fruits;
• consonant “byte” (“byte”) and “bite” (“bite”) remain only curious coincidences.

Monochrome logo (1998 - present)

By the end of the nineties, Apple was on the brink of failure. After his return to the company, Steve Jobs made a stir - he closed unpromising projects, updated the staff and stopped renewing licenses for proprietary software. To permanently disown the failed old course, the logo was also changed. Since 1998 and until now - this is a one-color apple.

If the size of the previous logo rarely exceeded 1.5 x 1.5 cm, then the monochrome version is usually larger, brighter and more noticeable. Now the "apple" is drawn in three colors: black, white and gray. But before there were more varieties, here are the most famous:

iMac G3 Logo

The release of the iMac G3 in 1998 marked the return of Apple. Such a logo was put on stylish monoblocks, and it was the same color as part of the case. The PowerMac, Apple Studio Display, and iBook released a year later received similar logos.

Aqua logo

This logo first appeared on the PowerMac G4 Cube and was used for several more years in advertising and banners. Plus, it could be seen in early versions of OS X, because the logo fit perfectly into the concept of the Aqua interface.

"Glass" logo

Apple's desktop OS users first saw the logo in 2002 when they upgraded to OS X Panther. With the release of the iPhone in 2007, this symbol moved to mobile devices. It was replaced only in 2013 in connection with the release of iOS 7 and the rejection of skeuomorphism.

metal logo

Metal logos are one of Apple's favorite and recognizable features. Appearing in iMac G4 monoblocks, such logos wandered across all categories of Apple products. iPhone cases with holes? All for the sake of the cherished metal apple.

Logo “Product.RED”

Apple is partnering with Product Red to help raise funds for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. On the official website of the company from Cupertino, you can find products, part of the proceeds from which go to this fund. Once a year, on December 1st, on World AIDS Day, Apple colors its logo red.

What's next?

Of course, Apple won't change the shape of its logo. You should not expect exotic color schemes from the company either, now minimalism is in vogue. Perhaps soon we will see the familiar logo made from new materials. Maybe