For example, this week has also seen the release of Dataquest's latest PC market share figures, and they certainly do not support the media's portrayal of a company in terminal decline. Granted, Apple slipped a notch last year—it is now the world's third-ranked computer company, based on units shipped. These rankings fluctuate. Apple had a miserable fourth quarter, but ranked first in U.S. shipments the quarter before. The point is, the company continues to rank near the top (Apple's 11.1% U.S. market share is just 1.1% behind #1-ranked Compaq) in machines actually sold, despite the overwhelming collective market share of the "Wintel" platform—a fact that speaks volumes about Mac users' continuing loyalty.

Also this week, at the Demo '96 trade show in Palm Springs, Apple demonstrated a fully functional port of the current Mac OS running on an IBM-built PowerPC Platform prototype. PowerPC Platform (formerly known as Common Hardware Reference Platform) machines can run various flavors of UNIX, as well as the Mac OS and Windows NT operating systems; they are due in the second half of this year and are expected to be supported by a number of major PC manufacturers in addition to IBM. Once this occurs, it will finally be possible to buy a Macintosh computer from brand-name companies other than Apple.

Here's some more interesting news, from InformationWeek: guess which company was awarded the most U.S.software patents last year? That's right—Apple led the pack with 53, Microsoft followed with 39, and Sun finished third with 23. Yet another example of Apple's march toward oblivion, we suppose.

Lest we be accused of smugness or overconfidence (character flaws accurately associated with partisans from the Mac camp, at least until recently), we hasten to repeat a sobering reality from last week's column: Windows has won the mass market. The desktop OS war is over, and Apple has lost. But this is far from a death knell, and may in fact be a blessing. Premium products typically do not command the highest market share; instead, they command a premium price from the elite group of consumers who want to use them. That has been the Apple business model up until 1995, and it can—and should—be again, especially when other companies begin offering the Mac OS on PowerPC Platform computers. Apple has also stated they will subcontract the manufacture of more of their lower-end models, another welcome step.

There is a greater threat to Apple's long-term health than its minority market share, and that is the gathering perception that the company is doomed, a perception obviously fueled by the recent spate of negative press coverage. This is a threat the company must take very seriously indeed. The age-old concept of "safety in numbers" retains a strong psychological pull, and is a primary motivation of "typical" (read: unaware) consumers when they contemplate a purchase. Apple must make an all-out effort to reach and persuade the consumers who are capable of making a decision on its merits. Fortunately this is already beginning to happen, thanks in no small part to the Mac's intensely loyal customer base and the ease and power of Internet distribution.

So, should you buy a Mac? If you've come this far, you already know the answer.

Bulletin (2/2/96): The Wall Street Journal reports this morning that Apple CEO Michael Spindler has been ousted by the company's board and replaced with Gilbert Amelio, an Apple board member who had been president and CEO of National Semiconductor Inc. The Journal further reports that Apple has apparently rejected Sun's takeover bid.

The New York Times, which did not have the Spindler report in this morning's edition, reports that, to the contrary, Apple is on the verge of accepting a Sun bid.

There's no denying it: this is an interesting story. Stay tuned, and keep the faith.

(Reviewed January 29, 1996)