Cupertino, California – Apple announced early today their plans for their latest installments in the iMac and MacBook series. These new computers, code named Big Bear and Little Bear, are “sure to make great strides and new innovative developments” as CEO and Founder Steve Jobs says.

When questioned about some newer features on the new systems, Jobs responded by saying “Well these developments are still in the works, and we are trying to keep them secret, but we have several ideas. One is the use of a 2 button mouse. No computer, that I am aware of, has ever had such monumental technology, as a two button mouse. I mean, think about what you can do with the current Mac’s single button Mighty Mouse; imagine the endless possibilities with 2 buttons. Another new software development we are planning on including is a word processor. No Mac has ever had a word processor, and I’m sure we are the first of any computers, including PCs to include this feature. With a word processor, you will be able to type up papers, edit them, and print them, without having to write them by hand, or use a typewriter. We have many other new revolutionary ideas, like allowing 3rd party program developers to create programs for our system, but that is unlikely.”

Some other features announced were the possibilities of a working user interface, the ability to actually move files instead of just creating shortcuts to the file, and a working video codec, instead of the QuickTime codec which causes videos using the codec to appear choppy and low quality. Another feature is the automatic save, where a file that a user is working on automatically saves, in case of losing power or crashes, so that the data will not be lost, a feature implemented on Windows over 6 years ago.

Apple has also had a huge success with their program development of iTunes, a music player with a built in music store and which allows syncing with the iPod. Apple has prided itself on iTunes being such a huge success, coupled with the success of the iPod. With over 4 billion downloads, iTunes is the largest legal online music store. Apple is very proud of their use the .m4p format of music, which makes it impossible to use the music for anything else besides an iPod and iTunes, also known as FairPlay. Even though the use of this format and FairPlay breaks Federal Digital Rights Management (DRM) and Anti-Trust laws, and goes against a Supreme Court Justice ruling, Apple feels confident their store will still stay on top. A California man is filing a class-action lawsuit against Apple on this basis, which could cost them several million dollars. Apple has yet to make an official statement on the topic, but is expected to continue to sell the illegal music files.

Mac’s market share has soared in the past few years, currently commanding nearly 10% of computers. Jobs said, “We feel that the reason we have been gaining so much of the market share is due to our fantastic marketing group. They have convinced millions of people that our computers are trendy and cool through product placement in movies, TV shows, commercials, and other ad forums. Sure, our computers are really not up to par with PCs, but that’s beside the point. Our marketing team has made the general public think Macs are great computers, and isn’t that all that really matters? Sure we don’t deliver computers that work well or are user friendly, but we give Mac users the ability to say ‘I’m better than you, because I have a Mac’. And then when a PC user tries to argue maybe how their computers are faster, easier to use, more features, or easier to fix, we feel we have given Mac users the ability to say ‘I don’t care, I like it, it works for me.’ We’ll have to continue this interview later, my Mac froze, and I have to go out to the Mac store to get some help.”


Rumors also speculate that they will fix several thousand crash issues, which will help with Mac user’s constant need to go to the Mac Store to have a Mac representative fix their computer, because no other computer technician knows how to fix a Mac. This will help with the monopolistic system that Mac Store’s have over Mac repairs, and allow for iMac and MacBook’s frequent problems to be fixed.

When asked about if Mac computers could ever surpass PCs, such as Alienware, Dell, and Gateway, Jobs said, “Oh I am sure of it. I believe one day everyone will have a Mac. I think the consumers will realize Macs true advantages over PCs. Sure, PCs are great for digital media, user friendly interface, videos, games, speed, performance, customization, management, use of third party programs, business, and play, but Macs are so much sleeker looking. Our computers are works of art; they have the greatest looking cases on the market. Unless of course you include Alienware computers, the new Dell XPS computer, and of course any custom case. Also Macs have… they have… Did I mention they have a really nice case?”