7 ms·

Endangered classic Mac plastic color returns as 3D-printer filament

251 points by CobaltFire 1y ago

JKCalhoun 1y ago
There is a wild assortment of modern hardware out there for keeping older hardware running. BlueSCSI is mentioned in the article and I have been a customer. I used a BlueSCSI to save pull some old sources from an old SCSI drive I had been hanging on to for 35 years or so [1]. People are making replacements for the dead lead-acid batteries from the original Mac (so-called) Portable. There are USB-powered cables to charge/power early MacBooks. I'm sure others can rattle off several other devices. Now you have people 3D printing replacement bezels, etc. for these old machines. Very cool.
- dylan604 1y ago
  Did you make a full backup of that old SCSI device to modern devices? What did you do with all of the extra space as I can only imagine how small the old SCSI device was compared with modern media sizes
  - JKCalhoun 1y ago
    Yeah, the drive was 20 or 40 MB, I think. Easily moved it all to an SD card. If anyone cares about old shareware game source code, I used the opportunity of recovering some old code to create a number of disk images (that you can mount from a modern Mac emulator like Basilisk II for example). Here is one (I think you can find the other three or so from this one): https://github.com/EngineersNeedArt/SoftDorothy-UnfinishedTales-Vol1 https://github.com/EngineersNeedArt/SoftDorothy-UnfinishedTa...
    - __del__ 1y ago
      these look great. haven't heard the name soft dorothy in ages.
    - hoistbypetard 1y ago
      Those screenshots make me miss Glider and Pararena. My brother and I used to be *so* competitive with our Glider scores.
    - Kstile 1y ago
      Very cool! Spent many an hour playing the original shareware glider. The Dorthy soft/Kansas connection makes so much sense after reading the Github repo. The logo was burned into my brain. I was always nervous about starting the game in front of my parents, but it turns out my dad was really good at glider.
JKCalhoun 1y ago
Something that has been kind of funny for me, perhaps others are feeling this way: I see increasingly this "retro computing community" fawning over machines that I think of as ... just machines that I used once. Some of the machines were even kind of scorned at the time as I recall — now they're sought after, lovingly restored.... I don't know if my reaction is as one who is being made aware of just how old they are (61, BTW) or if it is a bit of a sweetness that I feel that younger generations are coveting these older machines instead of reflexively landfilling them.
- nemo44x 1y ago
  A lot of this stuff was beyond reach for people back in the day. A Neo-Geo game system is something a lot of people still want because it’s something they can finally acquire.
- dylan604 1y ago
  Does that same feeling of wow still exist for kids today? They have grown up with computers there entire life. Some of us were introduced to computers in our teens, so there was prior experience of not having a computer for that wow to hit. Even now, the wow factor has diminished for me with new computers/devices. They are not really doing anything new as much as they just do the things faster/quiter/cheaper/smaller. There are definite milestones for me that just made my socks roll up and down when they were first available on computers. Is there anything not done on a computer now?
  - cosmic_cheese 1y ago
    > Some of us were introduced to computers in our teens, so there was prior experience of not having a computer for that wow to hit. The effect is similar for those of us whose exposure was earlier, but similarly devoid of computers prior. In my case it was a 1996 Mac tower w/internal 28k modem, at which point I was seven. It was not only the first computer of any sort in the house (no game consoles either) but also our first CD player. Up until then, the extent of tech for me was a late 80s Sharp VCR and an even older faux wood console Zenith TV hooked up to a roof antenna (no cable). Anything beyond that existed only in TV commercials and movies. It was such a huge shift that it’s difficult to articulate. It sparked a lifelong obsession.
wpm 1y ago
Polymaker's Panchroma Matte White is also a very close match to Classic Mac plastics. And since I didn't actually see a link to the filament in the Ars Technica article, here it is https://polarfilament.com/products/retro-platinum-pla-1kg-1-75mm https://polarfilament.com/products/retro-platinum-pla-1kg-1-...
- zargon 1y ago
  Panchroma Muted White is the one that is somewhat similar to the Apple platinum color. Someone sent Polymaker an RGB color code instead of a sample, so it's pretty off in reality. That would be fine, because all machines are yellowed to some degree anyway, so colors vary widely. More importantly, it's just terrible filament. Layer adhesion is virtually non-existent, compared to Polymaker's Poly Lite filaments. I have wasted so much time trying to print that awful filament. Hopefully this manufacturer is better.
  - wpm 1y ago
    Yep, you're right, I meant Muted White. I've not had too many issues with it on my crappy Ender 3 clone. I print at 225C with a 60C bed, which lowers to 55 after the first layer. Never had any problems other than typical bullshit with my Z-offset.
    - zargon 1y ago
      I don't have bed adhesion issues. The prints are just extremely fragile, features peeling off at the slightest provocation. The filament binds to itself a little bit better (but still not great) if I print at 230° with a cooling profile that tops out at a max 20% fan speed, but one can't print details or overhangs in those conditions.
ghushn3 1y ago
Not gonna lie, I was expecting to see something in translucent bondi blue.
peteforde 1y ago
This article is peak Jeff Geerling territory.
- ThatPlayer 1y ago
  Looks like he did comment on the original post: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffgeerling.com/post/3lqt52wh4ec2t https://bsky.app/profile/jeffgeerling.com/post/3lqt52wh4ec2t
  - geerlingguy 1y ago
    Heh, this morning my roll arrived (looks good, but don't have time today to unwrap it and fire off a print). I checked HN, saw this post... the rest is history :D
amelius 1y ago
Is anyone having success printing keycaps with filament?
- chubs 1y ago
  I printed a few for a friend. They seem to work just fine, but if you look close you can see the ‘terraced’ steps in the printing. Probably feels a bit rough. I guess you could smooth that with acetone vapour and ABS filament if so inclined.
- ehnto 1y ago
  With an ender 3 it's easy enough, but it does not feel as nice as shot ABS plastic caps. I am sure though, if you spent time polishing and painting the surface it would feel much better. It's still similar plastic after all. Biggest problem for me, if printed in PLA the + shaped slot eventually gets too loose and the key pops off. Can just print another but it's annoying for sure. Resin printers would likely have a much nicer out of the printer feel, with much smoother details at that size (for caps with 3D details on top). You could also print a whole set much quicker. Same speed for one cap as it would be for 100 at once.
  - Symbiote 1y ago
    I've been using a PLA space (1U) key for over 5 years without any issue. I think I printed the top at a smaller layer height.
  - amelius 1y ago
    Thanks. Do you have any suggestions for printing the glyphs on the faces/sides?
    - delecti 1y ago
      I saw a video on that a while back. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96T_fiLV38c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96T_fiLV38c IIRC you make transfers by (2d) printing on a laser printer and dissolving away the paper.
PunchyHamster 1y ago
...pretty sure you can just get the color scanned and mixed at any paint shop if you really want to
- Milner08 1y ago
  Getting it in paint form wasn't the issue. But the issue with that is many of the originals have changed colour over the year, so getting a match is hard. Plus the plastic is brittle so if you want to replace things you need to print it and its easier if you dont need to then paint it.
_def 1y ago
Why PLA though, it PETG has much better qualities
- alnwlsn 1y ago
  I'm not sure if there's any material limitation to it, but every PETG roll I've used has come out with a very glossy finish, which is probably not what you want here.
  - manyturtles 1y ago
    Matte PETG is available. No affiliation, but: https://californiafilament.com/collections/new https://californiafilament.com/collections/new . Great when you want the properties of PETG but not the shiny plastic look, e.g. printing things for car interiors. Like GP I'd also love to see this filament in PETG.
    - tengbretson 1y ago
      Bear in mind, this stuff is not easy to print!
TazeTSchnitzel 1y ago
https://youtube.com/watch?v=Grd_a4oi7qU https://youtube.com/watch?v=Grd_a4oi7qU is a really cool video where someone builds a computer that looks and feels like an early Apple design concept for a flat, portable Macintosh, something between a modern laptop and a tablet. They pull it off really well; if you didn't know better, you'd think you'd found a lost prototype. Anyway, one of the problems they had to solve was the plastic colour, and they did it by painting the case. With this new filament they wouldn't have needed the paint. :)
- WillAdams 1y ago
  Neat! Feels a bit like the Soulcircuit Pilet: https://soulscircuit.com/pilet https://soulscircuit.com/pilet
amelius 1y ago
If Woz were still in Apple there would be Apple-run makerspaces, with Apple branded 3d printers and all the types of filament you could dream of. Too bad Jobs turned the company into a boring locked-down anti-consumer appliance factory.
- millerm 1y ago
  If Jobs didn't come back and run Apple the way he did, it is very likely that Apple wouldn't exist today. They were on a tailspin to destruction. That's my take.
  - amelius 1y ago
    Both things can be true. And by the way, Microsoft saved them with a $150M injection. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/steve-jobs-and-bill-gates-what-happened-when-microsoft-saved-apple.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/steve-jobs-and-bill-gates-wh...
    - philistine 1y ago
      You're oversimplifying and missing the forest for the trees. By the time the checks cleared with the money in Apple's coffers, it was not needed to keep the company solvent. Jobs had shut down enough departments, and brought the company into one P&L statement, to reverse the finances of the company. The deal saved Apple because Microsoft committed to Office and IE on the Mac for five more years. That showed enough support to give confidence for consumers and institutions to keep buying Macs. When the five years were over, the iPod was out and Microsoft couldn't afford to leave the Mac.
- ninjamuffin99 1y ago
  Unfortunately in our reality Woz is merely a humble multimillionaire instead of a billionaire, and we do not have Woz funded makerspaces.
  - msgilligan 1y ago
crazygringo 1y ago
> The PLA filament (PLA is short for polylactic acid) allows hobbyists to 3D-print nostalgic novelties, replacement parts, and accessories that match the original color of vintage Apple computers. > Over time, original Macintosh plastics have become brittle and discolored with age, so matching the "original" color can be a somewhat challenging and subjective experience. So it seems like the color is for 3D-printing stuff to look "new"? Makes me wonder if there will be a "thirty years discolored" version as well, if you want to print a piece to replace something broken... or can you just leave it out in the sun for a couple weeks or something?
- bigfatfrock 1y ago
  > Makes me wonder if there will be a "thirty years discolored" version as well, if you want to print a piece to replace something broken... or can you just leave it out in the sun for a couple weeks or something? Would probably just need to make this part of a build loop where you send it through a high intensity light/heat cycle such as when they beat up jeans for purchase by people who buy those. "Would you prefer the color tone of the 1977 Apple II or perhaps a 1980 Apple III?"
  - wtallis 1y ago
    Nitpick: the "Platinum" color in question was part of the "Snow White" design language introduced in 1984 (and originally using a different color before switching to Platinum) so this is the wrong filament for emulating the color of 1977 or 1980 Apple products.
  - riskassessment 1y ago
    I don't think you can assume that this color-matched material will discolor with age in the same way that the original material did.
    - jchw 1y ago
      Yeah, especially since this plastic here is PLA and not ABS, and also the yellowing apparently comes from the brominated flame retardant added to it.
jbverschoor 1y ago
That’s a nice color.. but different from the nicotine yellow
lenerdenator 1y ago
I've said it before and I'll say it again: If Tim Cook introduced new Mac hardware with the retro look (anything before, eh, 2003) the tech world would lose its flipping mind.
charliebwrites 1y ago
I was really hoping this would be the colorful plastic backs of the early 2000s iMacs we had in school
leoc 1y ago
Here's what the foreword to Keep It Simple https://arnoldsche.com/en/vergriffen/keep-it-simple/ https://arnoldsche.com/en/vergriffen/keep-it-simple/ https://archive.org/details/keepitsimpleearl0000essl/ https://archive.org/details/keepitsimpleearl0000essl/ says about the Platinum colour, also known as Snow White: > Esslinger had been working with Steve Jobs since 1982 and was of paramount importance for the look of Apple products as an external designer -—as of 1983 also as Corporate Manager of Design. The start of collaboration between Steve Jobs and Hartmut Esslinger went from 1982 to 1983 with “Snow White,” a new color and design concept that was the base for all future Apple products. Besides specifying certain design aspects, the concept entailed introducing a new color. The dull “greige” of the industrial and corporate workplace was to be replaced by a broken white-called “Snow White" in the US. First used for the Apple llc, this white not only made the computer esthetically compatible with living rooms but also psychologically underpinned the user-friendly menu navigation. The new “Snow White” line worked up by Hartmut Esslinger was supposed to be launched with the Macintosh Computer—originally designed by Jerry Manock-but many reasons made this impossible. So the revised version could not be introduced until later: with the Macintosh SE.
- JeremyHerrman 1y ago
  I know this book is a first hand account from Esslinger himself, but aside from your quoted passage, I've never seen Snow White refer to a specific color, only to the design language itself. Even the other mentions of Snow White in his book refer to the design language, not a color. The first product to feature the Snow White design language was the Apple IIc, which featured a color known as "Fog" which is distinct from the Platinum used in Apple's products from 1986-1999. For a good side-by-side comparison, check out this image of an original Apple IIc (1984) and the Apple IIc Plus (1988): https://i0.wp.com/lowendmac.com/wp-content/uploads/iic-and-iic-plus.jpg https://i0.wp.com/lowendmac.com/wp-content/uploads/iic-and-i...
  - leakycap 1y ago
    Thanks, I was scratching my head wondering why anyone would confuse Snow White (the design language) and Platinum (the plastic shade of 80s-90s Apple devices)
Supermancho 1y ago
First thing I thought of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1N5Eqt5AEN8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1N5Eqt5AEN8 The first mac cube was the 4th computer I ever got my hands on, iirc. TRS80, Commodore, Apple II, Mac Plus
dheera 1y ago
These kind of "off-white" colors of the 1980s are making a comeback these days; they were considered dated design during the early 2000s but in the 2020s they're "in" again, e.g. anthropic.com, hume.ai, ...

251 points by CobaltFire 1y ago

There is a wild assortment of modern hardware out there for keeping older hardware running. BlueSCSI is mentioned in the article and I have been a customer. I used a BlueSCSI to save pull some old sources from an old SCSI drive I had been hanging on to for 35 years or so [1]. People are making replacements for the dead lead-acid batteries from the original Mac (so-called) Portable. There are USB-powered cables to charge/power early MacBooks. I'm sure others can rattle off several other devices. Now you have people 3D printing replacement bezels, etc. for these old machines. Very cool.

dylan604 1y ago
Did you make a full backup of that old SCSI device to modern devices? What did you do with all of the extra space as I can only imagine how small the old SCSI device was compared with modern media sizes
- JKCalhoun 1y ago
  Yeah, the drive was 20 or 40 MB, I think. Easily moved it all to an SD card. If anyone cares about old shareware game source code, I used the opportunity of recovering some old code to create a number of disk images (that you can mount from a modern Mac emulator like Basilisk II for example). Here is one (I think you can find the other three or so from this one): https://github.com/EngineersNeedArt/SoftDorothy-UnfinishedTales-Vol1 https://github.com/EngineersNeedArt/SoftDorothy-UnfinishedTa...
  - __del__ 1y ago
    these look great. haven't heard the name soft dorothy in ages.
  - hoistbypetard 1y ago
    Those screenshots make me miss Glider and Pararena. My brother and I used to be *so* competitive with our Glider scores.
  - Kstile 1y ago
    Very cool! Spent many an hour playing the original shareware glider. The Dorthy soft/Kansas connection makes so much sense after reading the Github repo. The logo was burned into my brain. I was always nervous about starting the game in front of my parents, but it turns out my dad was really good at glider.

JKCalhoun 1y ago

Something that has been kind of funny for me, perhaps others are feeling this way: I see increasingly this "retro computing community" fawning over machines that I think of as ... just machines that I used once. Some of the machines were even kind of scorned at the time as I recall — now they're sought after, lovingly restored.... I don't know if my reaction is as one who is being made aware of just how old they are (61, BTW) or if it is a bit of a sweetness that I feel that younger generations are coveting these older machines instead of reflexively landfilling them.

nemo44x 1y ago
A lot of this stuff was beyond reach for people back in the day. A Neo-Geo game system is something a lot of people still want because it’s something they can finally acquire.
dylan604 1y ago
Does that same feeling of wow still exist for kids today? They have grown up with computers there entire life. Some of us were introduced to computers in our teens, so there was prior experience of not having a computer for that wow to hit. Even now, the wow factor has diminished for me with new computers/devices. They are not really doing anything new as much as they just do the things faster/quiter/cheaper/smaller. There are definite milestones for me that just made my socks roll up and down when they were first available on computers. Is there anything not done on a computer now?
- cosmic_cheese 1y ago
  > Some of us were introduced to computers in our teens, so there was prior experience of not having a computer for that wow to hit. The effect is similar for those of us whose exposure was earlier, but similarly devoid of computers prior. In my case it was a 1996 Mac tower w/internal 28k modem, at which point I was seven. It was not only the first computer of any sort in the house (no game consoles either) but also our first CD player. Up until then, the extent of tech for me was a late 80s Sharp VCR and an even older faux wood console Zenith TV hooked up to a roof antenna (no cable). Anything beyond that existed only in TV commercials and movies. It was such a huge shift that it’s difficult to articulate. It sparked a lifelong obsession.

wpm 1y ago

Polymaker's Panchroma Matte White is also a very close match to Classic Mac plastics. And since I didn't actually see a link to the filament in the Ars Technica article, here it is https://polarfilament.com/products/retro-platinum-pla-1kg-1-75mm https://polarfilament.com/products/retro-platinum-pla-1kg-1-...

zargon 1y ago
Panchroma Muted White is the one that is somewhat similar to the Apple platinum color. Someone sent Polymaker an RGB color code instead of a sample, so it's pretty off in reality. That would be fine, because all machines are yellowed to some degree anyway, so colors vary widely. More importantly, it's just terrible filament. Layer adhesion is virtually non-existent, compared to Polymaker's Poly Lite filaments. I have wasted so much time trying to print that awful filament. Hopefully this manufacturer is better.
- wpm 1y ago
  Yep, you're right, I meant Muted White. I've not had too many issues with it on my crappy Ender 3 clone. I print at 225C with a 60C bed, which lowers to 55 after the first layer. Never had any problems other than typical bullshit with my Z-offset.
  - zargon 1y ago
    I don't have bed adhesion issues. The prints are just extremely fragile, features peeling off at the slightest provocation. The filament binds to itself a little bit better (but still not great) if I print at 230° with a cooling profile that tops out at a max 20% fan speed, but one can't print details or overhangs in those conditions.

ghushn3 1y ago

Not gonna lie, I was expecting to see something in translucent bondi blue.

peteforde 1y ago

This article is peak Jeff Geerling territory.

ThatPlayer 1y ago
Looks like he did comment on the original post: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffgeerling.com/post/3lqt52wh4ec2t https://bsky.app/profile/jeffgeerling.com/post/3lqt52wh4ec2t
- geerlingguy 1y ago
  Heh, this morning my roll arrived (looks good, but don't have time today to unwrap it and fire off a print). I checked HN, saw this post... the rest is history :D

amelius 1y ago

Is anyone having success printing keycaps with filament?

chubs 1y ago
I printed a few for a friend. They seem to work just fine, but if you look close you can see the ‘terraced’ steps in the printing. Probably feels a bit rough. I guess you could smooth that with acetone vapour and ABS filament if so inclined.
ehnto 1y ago
With an ender 3 it's easy enough, but it does not feel as nice as shot ABS plastic caps. I am sure though, if you spent time polishing and painting the surface it would feel much better. It's still similar plastic after all. Biggest problem for me, if printed in PLA the + shaped slot eventually gets too loose and the key pops off. Can just print another but it's annoying for sure. Resin printers would likely have a much nicer out of the printer feel, with much smoother details at that size (for caps with 3D details on top). You could also print a whole set much quicker. Same speed for one cap as it would be for 100 at once.
- Symbiote 1y ago
  I've been using a PLA space (1U) key for over 5 years without any issue. I think I printed the top at a smaller layer height.
- amelius 1y ago
  Thanks. Do you have any suggestions for printing the glyphs on the faces/sides?
  - delecti 1y ago
    I saw a video on that a while back. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96T_fiLV38c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96T_fiLV38c IIRC you make transfers by (2d) printing on a laser printer and dissolving away the paper.

PunchyHamster 1y ago

...pretty sure you can just get the color scanned and mixed at any paint shop if you really want to

Milner08 1y ago
Getting it in paint form wasn't the issue. But the issue with that is many of the originals have changed colour over the year, so getting a match is hard. Plus the plastic is brittle so if you want to replace things you need to print it and its easier if you dont need to then paint it.

_def 1y ago

Why PLA though, it PETG has much better qualities

alnwlsn 1y ago
I'm not sure if there's any material limitation to it, but every PETG roll I've used has come out with a very glossy finish, which is probably not what you want here.
- manyturtles 1y ago
  Matte PETG is available. No affiliation, but: https://californiafilament.com/collections/new https://californiafilament.com/collections/new . Great when you want the properties of PETG but not the shiny plastic look, e.g. printing things for car interiors. Like GP I'd also love to see this filament in PETG.
  - tengbretson 1y ago
    Bear in mind, this stuff is not easy to print!

TazeTSchnitzel 1y ago

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Grd_a4oi7qU https://youtube.com/watch?v=Grd_a4oi7qU is a really cool video where someone builds a computer that looks and feels like an early Apple design concept for a flat, portable Macintosh, something between a modern laptop and a tablet. They pull it off really well; if you didn't know better, you'd think you'd found a lost prototype. Anyway, one of the problems they had to solve was the plastic colour, and they did it by painting the case. With this new filament they wouldn't have needed the paint. :)

WillAdams 1y ago
Neat! Feels a bit like the Soulcircuit Pilet: https://soulscircuit.com/pilet https://soulscircuit.com/pilet

amelius 1y ago

If Woz were still in Apple there would be Apple-run makerspaces, with Apple branded 3d printers and all the types of filament you could dream of. Too bad Jobs turned the company into a boring locked-down anti-consumer appliance factory.

millerm 1y ago
If Jobs didn't come back and run Apple the way he did, it is very likely that Apple wouldn't exist today. They were on a tailspin to destruction. That's my take.
- amelius 1y ago
  Both things can be true. And by the way, Microsoft saved them with a $150M injection. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/steve-jobs-and-bill-gates-what-happened-when-microsoft-saved-apple.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/steve-jobs-and-bill-gates-wh...
  - philistine 1y ago
    You're oversimplifying and missing the forest for the trees. By the time the checks cleared with the money in Apple's coffers, it was not needed to keep the company solvent. Jobs had shut down enough departments, and brought the company into one P&L statement, to reverse the finances of the company. The deal saved Apple because Microsoft committed to Office and IE on the Mac for five more years. That showed enough support to give confidence for consumers and institutions to keep buying Macs. When the five years were over, the iPod was out and Microsoft couldn't afford to leave the Mac.
ninjamuffin99 1y ago
Unfortunately in our reality Woz is merely a humble multimillionaire instead of a billionaire, and we do not have Woz funded makerspaces.
- msgilligan 1y ago

crazygringo 1y ago

> The PLA filament (PLA is short for polylactic acid) allows hobbyists to 3D-print nostalgic novelties, replacement parts, and accessories that match the original color of vintage Apple computers. > Over time, original Macintosh plastics have become brittle and discolored with age, so matching the "original" color can be a somewhat challenging and subjective experience. So it seems like the color is for 3D-printing stuff to look "new"? Makes me wonder if there will be a "thirty years discolored" version as well, if you want to print a piece to replace something broken... or can you just leave it out in the sun for a couple weeks or something?

bigfatfrock 1y ago
> Makes me wonder if there will be a "thirty years discolored" version as well, if you want to print a piece to replace something broken... or can you just leave it out in the sun for a couple weeks or something? Would probably just need to make this part of a build loop where you send it through a high intensity light/heat cycle such as when they beat up jeans for purchase by people who buy those. "Would you prefer the color tone of the 1977 Apple II or perhaps a 1980 Apple III?"
- wtallis 1y ago
  Nitpick: the "Platinum" color in question was part of the "Snow White" design language introduced in 1984 (and originally using a different color before switching to Platinum) so this is the wrong filament for emulating the color of 1977 or 1980 Apple products.
- riskassessment 1y ago
  I don't think you can assume that this color-matched material will discolor with age in the same way that the original material did.
  - jchw 1y ago
    Yeah, especially since this plastic here is PLA and not ABS, and also the yellowing apparently comes from the brominated flame retardant added to it.

jbverschoor 1y ago

That’s a nice color.. but different from the nicotine yellow

lenerdenator 1y ago

I've said it before and I'll say it again: If Tim Cook introduced new Mac hardware with the retro look (anything before, eh, 2003) the tech world would lose its flipping mind.

charliebwrites 1y ago

I was really hoping this would be the colorful plastic backs of the early 2000s iMacs we had in school

leoc 1y ago

Here's what the foreword to Keep It Simple https://arnoldsche.com/en/vergriffen/keep-it-simple/ https://arnoldsche.com/en/vergriffen/keep-it-simple/ https://archive.org/details/keepitsimpleearl0000essl/ https://archive.org/details/keepitsimpleearl0000essl/ says about the Platinum colour, also known as Snow White: > Esslinger had been working with Steve Jobs since 1982 and was of paramount importance for the look of Apple products as an external designer -—as of 1983 also as Corporate Manager of Design. The start of collaboration between Steve Jobs and Hartmut Esslinger went from 1982 to 1983 with “Snow White,” a new color and design concept that was the base for all future Apple products. Besides specifying certain design aspects, the concept entailed introducing a new color. The dull “greige” of the industrial and corporate workplace was to be replaced by a broken white-called “Snow White" in the US. First used for the Apple llc, this white not only made the computer esthetically compatible with living rooms but also psychologically underpinned the user-friendly menu navigation. The new “Snow White” line worked up by Hartmut Esslinger was supposed to be launched with the Macintosh Computer—originally designed by Jerry Manock-but many reasons made this impossible. So the revised version could not be introduced until later: with the Macintosh SE.

JeremyHerrman 1y ago
I know this book is a first hand account from Esslinger himself, but aside from your quoted passage, I've never seen Snow White refer to a specific color, only to the design language itself. Even the other mentions of Snow White in his book refer to the design language, not a color. The first product to feature the Snow White design language was the Apple IIc, which featured a color known as "Fog" which is distinct from the Platinum used in Apple's products from 1986-1999. For a good side-by-side comparison, check out this image of an original Apple IIc (1984) and the Apple IIc Plus (1988): https://i0.wp.com/lowendmac.com/wp-content/uploads/iic-and-iic-plus.jpg https://i0.wp.com/lowendmac.com/wp-content/uploads/iic-and-i...
- leakycap 1y ago
  Thanks, I was scratching my head wondering why anyone would confuse Snow White (the design language) and Platinum (the plastic shade of 80s-90s Apple devices)

Supermancho 1y ago

First thing I thought of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1N5Eqt5AEN8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1N5Eqt5AEN8 The first mac cube was the 4th computer I ever got my hands on, iirc. TRS80, Commodore, Apple II, Mac Plus

dheera 1y ago

These kind of "off-white" colors of the 1980s are making a comeback these days; they were considered dated design during the early 2000s but in the 2020s they're "in" again, e.g. anthropic.com, hume.ai, ...