Apple Computer has been great for creating "moments in time". The 1984 ad was memorable. So was the release of the Newton (and the subsequent story line in Doonsbery).
One of the more interesting moments of Apple History is the promo video Scully commissioned for the "Knowledge Navigator". It was supposed to be the direction he was taking the company in the mid 1980's (around the time of the proliferation of the various Mac II-series models). It was part AI-project (an autonomous agent would mediate your use of the computer, the network and your datebook), and part usability concept (the computer was part of your desk mat, or about the size and shape of a thin 8.5x11" paperback book).
One of the more memorable scenes from that short video was the 40-year old illiterate man sitting down with his KN to magically read a newspaper.
His computer opened up like a book to a full-sized flat panel display. No big bulky monitor, desktop unit or keyboard. It was all just there.
Who knows. Maybe someone at Samsung was also inspired by that same video. :-)
From the Samsung story:
Samsung sees potential sales of flat panels for electronic books at 24,973 units this year.
Who said that marketing wasn't a science?
