In an article regarding Palm’s decision to use Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 5.0 for their next Treo (see related article Palm goes to the dark side, next Treo to use Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0), Tech pundit Rob Enderle writes:
“It is interesting to note, that few seem to remember that Microsoft wrote the first MacOS under contract to Apple nearly two decades ago but, like most Apple partnerships, this one also ended badly.” – Rob Enderle, September 26th, 2005
Let’s pause to let that one sink in… savor, bask, indulge… Okay, one more time:
“It is interesting to note, that few seem to remember that Microsoft wrote the first MacOS under contract to Apple nearly two decades ago but, like most Apple partnerships, this one also ended badly.” – Rob Enderle, September 26th, 2005
Huh? Count us among the few that don’t remember a bit of that historical tidbit. We thought Apple’s Macintosh team designed and built the original Macintosh hardware and software: Bill Atkinson, Chris Espinosa, Joanna Hoffman, George Crow, Burrell Smith, Jerry Manock, Jef Raskin and Andy Hertzfeld. We searched all over, but cannot find anything about Microsoft writing the first Mac OS. Can you? About the only thing we can think of that Endere might mean is that Apple licensed Microsoft’s Applesoft Basic for the Apple II. Is that what he means? Or perhaps he means that Steve Jobs recruited Microsoft to be the first third party applications software developer for the Mac?
Some of the places we looked (and failed) to find out about how Microsoft wrote the first Mac OS under contract to Apple:
• kernelthread.com – The Macintosh
• Wikipedia – Mac OS
• Jef Raskin – Recollections of the Macintosh project
• MacKiDo – Early Mac OS
• Encyclopædia Britannica – Macintosh and the first affordable GUI
• Folklore.org: Andy Hertzfeld – The first time we demoed the Macintosh to Microsoft
• Folklore.org: Andy Hertzfeld – Steve Jobs confronts Bill Gates about copying the Mac
Enderle’s full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: So, are we among the few that don’t remember that “Microsoft wrote the first Mac OS under contract to Apple nearly two decades ago” or has Enderle just taken his “Enderleness” to hitherto unknown level?
What a turd
Wow. What an idiot. I’ve read every book on Apple for the past 15 years and never found a single shred of evidence to support that. What an idiot.
If Tera were around she’d rip the guy. Thanks MDN for exposing such idiocy.
Bambi Hambi
Mac360
How could Microsoft have written the first MacOS “nearly two decades ago” when the first MacOS was written well before that (for Lisa) and at least by 1984.
MS developed some of the first apps available for the Macintosh.
Who is it that signs his checks? I need a job and know absolutley nothing of Apples’ history. Shoot me a line Rob. Seriously
Is this what is called revisionist history?
I think he meant when it comes to software developement…i could be wrong…
I think Enderle is probably thinking of AppleSoft BASIC, the floating point BASIC written by Microsoft for the Apple ][ and licensed by Apple in 1977.
How can anyone take analysis written by an analyst that doesn’t do his research?
I’m afraid there’s to be no end to Enderle’s moronity (I know it’s not a word but it just sounds so right for him).
MS did NOT write the original Mac OS. I don’t know where he pulled this tidbit from, but it’s probably better that way. I’ve read every book ever written about Apple and, no, it’s absolutely 100% not true. There isn’t even some slight connection that could be blown out of proportion to concoct such an idea. The original Mac OS was probably 90% finished before MS even knew it existed.
One could, however, argue that Apple wrote the first version of Windows ; )
Microsoft has NEVER even written their OWN operating system, having bought the first one (MS-DOS) and stolen the other (Windows).
Enderle needs to up his lithium dose.
BTW, just one more thing…
“With a Palm user experience which rivals Apple’s, that being no surprise given Palm’s Apple roots…”
Uh, what roots, Rob? Palm came from Apple? Apple invested in Palm? Nada. About the only ‘roots’ could be some former Apple employees helped create Palm at US Robotics. That’s hardly ‘Apple roots.’
Bambi Hambi
Mac360
Where does this guy get these fairy tales from? The first Mac OS was done by Apple for Apple and then in 1995 Windows came out with there clone OS. A bad imitation but it was the same.
MS signs his checks, and since MS is running so scared of Google and Apple and Linux, they’re writing bigger checks than normal to idiots like Enderle.
Hope no-one followed the link to his bankrupt, vaporous site…
What a joy to learn history from the great Tech Pundit Rob Enderle:
“Microsoft wrote the first MacOS under contract to Apple”
ah, yes… and George Washington wrote the first draft of the Gettysburg Address (from the grave no less)!
Enderle must be getting paid big bucks from Microsoft to spew this level of FUD to the masses. Sad thing is that there will be an army of folks who believe him blindly without questioning where in the world he got that information. I do not even see how folks consider him a “journalist.”
The Village Idiot is correct. Enderle is remembering (!) that, while Woz wrote Integer BASIC for the Apple II, MS wrote Applesoft BASIC for the Apple II circa 1978. And it wasn’t really the OS. The Apple II “Redbook” defines the 2K ROM that was the Apple II “OS”.
Please don’t click on the Fudmeister link, thank you.
Never seen any evidence that MS had anything to do with writing the Mac OS, but there are some really good articles by Andy Hertzfeld on folklore.org which outline a different story….
http://folklore.org/StoryView.py?project=Macintosh&story=A_Rich_Neighbor_Named_Xerox.txt&characters=Bill Gates&sortOrder=Sort by Date&detail=medium
Mr Wizard,
Enderle clearly wrote “MacOS,” not Apple II’s 2K ROM. The Village Idiot is incorrect.
– Andy
mdn editors-
can you please stop linking to his website? i think most of the regulars know not to give him hits, but for all the new mac users who come here, it’s just wrong to give them the chance to support him. no matter your side, if you visit his page, he wins. don’t let it happen!
dogfriend,
Thanks much for the repetitive link for those of us who missed MDN’s last bulleted link.
If you remove the case from an original 128K Mac (not easy to do since you need a special tool), you will see engraved on the inside of the case the signatures of the team who developed the Macintosh — the team at Apple shown in the picture on the left above. Funny, no mention of Microsoft. Guess Apple forgot to list them
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MDN, stop running this brain-dead fools nonsense in your headlines!
Incase you’re not aware, services like Google News picks up the crap, shows it on their headlines page; it then gets replicated by the lazy syndication junkies and takes on a life of its own.
If you insist on running headlines with this moron’s name, at least use a <i>descriptive</i> adjective before his name.
Maybe this guy has Apple mixed up with IBM. Microsoft was contracted to write what became OS/2 for IBM. That product is now about to be terminated. (yes, they actually still have OS/2 right now)
Well, one thing’s for sure:
Rob “Earthquake” Enderle just became Rob “Microsoft wrote the first Mac OS” Enderle.
For an encore, next week Mr. Enderle will claim that Marie Antoinette wrote the USA’s first Declaration of Independence.
I hope, I mean REALLY HOPE, that this is the result of a typo along the lines of “…wrote software for the first MacOS…” but the as I re-read it, it appears less likely.
Furthermore, pretty much every other fact he presents appears to have been plucked out of nowhere, though I do seem to remember that a number of the people involved in Newton did end up working on the Palm project so that part is based (partially) on reality.
Was this one written after a heavy night on the beers?
Or is he just a dolt?