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By Root 540 0

be on the verge of announcing a computer was larger, richer, and stronger than Apple. Radio Shack, with its thousands of stores and a twenty-five-million-name mailing list, was supposed to have an edge in distribution. But Radio Shack’s TRS-80 black-and-white computer was tarnished by a low-quality image and proved difficult to expand. This allowed Apple’s adverts to play on the Apple II’s expandable nature. Commodore’s PET had a pleasant name, but the company was dogged by a lack of funds, management by fiat, a keyboard that looked like an upgraded calculator, and a case made in a Canadian metal-bending factory because the company chose not to pay for plastic cases. It was also black and white, which compared unfavorably with Apple’s color. Atari and Mattel, with their stronger names in consumer electronics, were slow to produce a computer, and when they finally did, their machines were inferior to the Apple II. Smaller companies like Ohio Scientific and Cromemco, despite having reliable computers, had not sought venture funding. Kentucky Fried Computers was too whimsical a name for a computer company, but by the time it was changed to Northstar Computers, much of the damage had already been done. Meanwhile, MITS—the number-one name in microcomputing—was swallowed by Pertec, a large Chatsworth, California, company that made peripherals and minicomputers.

But looming behind the small fry was the massive specter of Texas Instruments. And in 1978 and 1979, it was Texas Instruments that inspired knee-knocking fear. The company was 327 million times the size of Apple, made its own semiconductors, had gained experience selling consumer products with a line of calculators that had severely damaged other competitors, and along the way, had gained a reputation for remorselessly pursuing profit. In his newsletter Ben Rosen warned that Texas Instruments had a corporate commitment to personal computers and “when TI has a corporate commitment—watch out.”

While the prospect (more than the eventual appearance) of a Texas Instruments computer stirred up fear in Cupertino, Apple was quietly working with the press. Regis McKenna recalled, “We thought the way to beat TI was with the press. TI had always had an adversarial relationship with the press and Apple had a chance to develop a friendly relationship. The press was the equalizer.” McKenna understood how to handle the press better than any of the senior managers at Apple did. Scott grumbled that he had never been quoted properly; Markkula was not always easy to understand and was likely to rile reporters by presenting them with Apple button-pins or informing them that the story they were about to write would be very important for the company or insisting that buyers would be able to learn how to use the Apple II within half an hour. Jobs, meanwhile, carried away with his own enthusiasm, was always liable to blurt out every secret detail of Apple’s plans. Yet Apple was also something of a dream for a public-relations man. It was a cheerful story that, once told, was difficult to forget and revolved around the sort of distinctive personalities that, at least for journalists, always help give companies a clear image.

McKenna was far more patient and didn’t expect an interview or telephone call to generate a story immediately. He told his clients that they had to build long-term relationships with the press, preached the virtues of patience, and took a more dispassionate view of the stories that eventually appeared. While Apple started to get occasional coverage in trade magazines like Interface Age,it took several years to crack the skepticism and suspicion at better-known magazines where the name of the McKenna Agency wasn’t even recognized. The account executives at the McKenna Agency spent several years wooing the press, answering reporters’ calls, providing background material, arranging photo sessions that never ran, answering questions that never appeared in print, and checking facts. He also coached his clients—trying to anticipate the questions that would be asked, or rehearsing