The Mac
The iMac G3, the computer icon of the 20th century which re-established Apple Mac back into the computer market enabling them once again to compete against IBM and the world of personal computers. It has entered the genre of computers pushing the limits and has broken the traditional generic structure and signification process associated with computers. The iMac has set the pace for all industrial design and has carried the world of computers through to the 21st century. It has acquired cult status and influenced design creating a whole line of spin offs sporting transparent plastic casings.
Traditionally the generic signifiers of computers are the square shape, geometric bulky monitors, oversized keyboards, mouses and a chunky rigid mass for a tower. Before the iMac all computers were grey, most towers had metal casings all had endless amounts of cables connecting the different components. Traditionally these signs signified business, order, seriousness and stability. The colour grey signifies monotony and a rigid atmosphere void of experimentation and creativity. The square a sturdy shape relied upon for stability, which is evident and reinforced in everyday life. Metal is a signifier of sterile and industrial environments commonly found in the business world where the need for computers originated. Jonanthan Ive realised this and created a computer suitable for a wider market, people other than company workers and business professionals. The iMac has broken these codes and traditional generic markers by containing an exterior plastic composition of one third transparent and two thirds translucent colour. Its overall dynamic shape has changed also mimicking the form of a sphere and no longer has a separate hard drive and endless amounts of cables.
The NEC Corporation Ltd, has also moved away from some of the traditional generic markers but still maintain the same signified meanings which can be seen in the new C.A.N. Their focus was on creating an ecologically sound computer system which could be easily updated and rebuilt when new technology was available instead of forcing the customer to buy a completely different new machine and throwing the old machine away. They have streamlined the monitor, keyboard and mouse and abolished cables between the three. Although the visual codes have been altered, the primarily aluminium casing creates signified meaning of industrial, business, stability and control. The only differences to the signified meanings of the traditional generic codes of computers are the minimalist concept of the aesthetics.
IBM has abandoned the traditional generic signifiers of personal computers opting for subliminal organic structure while still maintaining the traditional signified meanings of the first computers. Similar to the C.A.N the IBM Life Network Infoportal utilises a streamlined screen and aluminium casing, it differs in that its keyboard is split in two and attached to either side of the screen which stems from a series of plant like branches. The shapes of the L.N.I are broken down fractionally compared to the C.A.N, but are still a long way from abandoning the traditional signification of computers. Ultimately the signification of the L.N.I is exactly that of the C.A.N with a slightly more organic twist. It too has signified meanings of business, order and rigidness.
The motivation for iMac to reinvent the Apple Mac was to create “a computer that was accessible and less terrifying for people who don’t feel comfortable with technology” Jonathan Ive explained “ We realised that a computers functions change fundamentally from one second to the next. It’s a drawing machine, a database, a digital video-editing suite. So we figured out a metaphor for this instant and constant transformation: translucence” (Farrelly 2000, pp. 87)
The most dominant signifier of the iMac; it’s candy coloured translucent plastic has been the grounds for a cult of spin offs but as Jonathan Ive commented on the imitators “ Some people think in really superficial terms- that the iMac is just about colour, it frustrates me that they’ve missed the point” (Farrelly 2000, pp. 86). The arbitrary sign of the colourful computers presents signified meanings of fun, candy and happiness. The iMac’s look is almost good enough to eat. The colours also present metaphors of children, youth and toys appealing to children and the child in everyone. The translucent plastic also contains a similar metaphorical meaning for youth but achieves this by allowing the receiver to evaluate the computer from a completely different way, inside and out. The signified shape of the iMac takes on a smooth and harmonious form lending to a metaphorical suggestion of calm and relaxation. The translucence adds to the curvaceous form exuding a non-threatening, less mysterious and more inviting atmosphere for users. The bright colours coupled with the smooth curves create a bubble or dome, which represent codes prominent in seventies and eighties. Science-fiction, space exploration, the future and disco were iconic symbols established for these eras and Ive has reinvented them into the design of iMac to mirror the same trend and exploration which has been reopened in the late 20th and early 21st century.
The shape of the iMac can also be metaphorically linked to Apple Mac’s logo and the metaphors hidden within it. Throughout time the apple has been a symbol of temptation originating from the Garden of Eden. Knowledge and food are also aspects signified through the apple. The apple logo contains a bite missing from one section of the apple almost tempting the receiver to take another “byte” from the apple and enhance their knowledge.
The iMac has undoubtedly done for computers what impressionism and cubism has done for painting. It has altered the generic markers and codes pertaining to the genre, which previously have remained unchanged. Companies like IBM and NEC have attempted to alter these markers and on a purely denotative level have achieved this. However on the connotative level the original metaphors have remained unchanged. Apple have created the iMac and reinvented the signification process and metaphors for the genre.
