Eleven things you didn't know about Apple

The company behind the ubiquitous iPhone and iPad is famously secretive, but there a few little known facts about the California-based company.

1 Steve Jobs was adopted and half Syrian

Apple?s legendary co-founder and chief executive died in October 2011, but while heading up the company Steve Jobs revealed that he was actually adopted and half Syrian. His biological parents, Joanne Schieble and Syrian immigrant Abdulfattah Jandali met as 23-year-old students at the University of Wisconsin.

Jobs was put up for adoption in 1955, through pressure from Schieble?s parents. Schieble and Jandali later married and had a daughter, Jobs? biological sister.

2 Apple’s first computer was satanically priced

Apple?s first computer, the Apple I, was priced at $666.66. Steve Wozniak apparently priced it without realising that the triple-six configuration had Satanic connotations, instead pricing it at one-third over the wholesale price of $500, and preferring one repeating digit over 667 because it was "easier to type". 3 Apple ships everything by air, not sea

Apple is Cathay Pacific?s biggest freight customer, as it prefers to move most of its stock by air instead of boat. The benefit is being able to move stock quickly rather than cheaply, with stock moved from China to the US in 15 hours instead of 30 days. It means that less money is tied up in stock (normally on credit) before it can be sold on.

It also means that phones, tablets and computers all worth in excess of ?500 each are not sitting in a container at sea which might sink or get hijacked.

4 A Macintosh is an apple variety

The Apple Macintosh is so called because the macintosh was Jef Raskin?s favourite variety of Apple. At the time it was just a codename, which Steve Jobs reportedly tried to change to “bicycle” while Raskin was out of the office, but Macintosh stuck until the end of product development and made it onto the box.

5 Apple’s hero shots aren’t computer generated

The big, glossy super-high-resolution photos of Apple?s latest products in adverts and on its site are not computer generated. Instead, they are a painstaking blend of hundreds of high resolution, super-close up photos all with narrow depths of field.

The individual images are stitched together, in a similar way to high dynamic range photography which blends photos with different exposures, into one massive, ultra-high-resolution image entirely in focus. 6 Steve Wozniak is still an Apple employee

Apple co-founder Steve “Woz” Wozniak set up the company in 1976 with Steve Jobs in his garage. He no longer actively works for Apple, but is still officially an Apple employee and receives a stipend estimated to be worth $120,000 a year.

7 Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow

Steve Jobs? last words were "Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow" while looking over the shoulders of his family, according to his sister Mona Simpson, who allowed the eulogy she gave at Jobs? memorial service to be published in the New York Times.

8 Apple had three founders

Apple was founded in 1976 by three people, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne.

Ronald drew the first Apple logo, wrote the original partnership agreement and the Apple I computer manual, but sold his 10% stake two weeks in for just $800 because of concerns over debt.

That same stake would have been worth over $35bn today.

9 Thank Ive for the white iPod

Steve Jobs was opposed to the idea of white products initially, but was convinced to use white as Apple?s primary colour for its products by Apple?s designer Sir Jony Ive.

In Ive?s recent biography, former Apple designer Doug Satzger has said that Jobs was only won over by white when shown a different shade called “moon grey”.

Ive?s love for white originated long before he joined Apple, right back to the work he produced while still a design student at Newcastle.

10 Packaging obsession

Apple pays as much attention to its packaging as it does to its products. So much so, that it has a dedicated secret packaging room within its headquarters in Cupertino, California.

Packaging designers spend countless hours opening boxes within this special room, attempting to elicit the correct emotional response in customers opening new products for the first time. In his book, Inside Apple, Adam Lashinsky describes the level of obsession and attention to detail Apple commits to packaging:

“One after another, the designer created and tested an endless series of arrows, colours, and tapes for a tiny tab designed to show the consumer where to pull back the invisible, full-bleed sticker adhered to the top of the clear iPod box. Getting it just right was this particular designer's obsession.”

11 Balls

In his recent unauthorised biography of Jony Ive, author Leander Kahney included a photo of an iMac G4 inside its box. The stem connecting the screen to the domed base is encased in polystyrene, with

the two ball-shaped speakers carefully and very deliberately placed either side of the shaft. The idea of arranging them to look like male genitals was apparently the idea of the design team.

For good measure, the book also features a high school photo of Ive, arguably the world's most famous designer and tastemaker, with a very impressive mullet.

第二篇：10 Uses of Apple Cider Vinegar You Might Not Know About

Though many people keep apple cider vinegar at home for use in salad dressings and marinades, but it actually has several other uses as well. From household cleaners to beauty products, a.c. vinegar can be used in more ways than you may have imagined.

Check out some of these ideas about how to use this wonderfully versatile vinegar.

1. Facial Toner

Make your own skin toner with a ratio of 1 part apple cider vinegar to 2 parts water, and use a cotton ball to daub your face with it after cleansing. It’ll tighten up pores, clear blackheads, and help fight acne breakouts as well as helping to heal any acne that has already popped up. Rinse your face with plain water 10 minutes or so after swabbing.

2. Conditioning Rinse for Hair

Instead of store-bought conditioners that are laden with chemicals, just stir 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar into 1 cup of water, and rinse your hair with it after shampooing. It adds body and shine, and will help de-tangle your hair as well.

3. Bug Bite Soother

Full-strength vinegar swabbed onto bites can alleviate itchiness, and speed healing. Just soak a cotton ball in apple cider vinegar and then press against the bite for about 30 seconds. Repeat every hour or so for itch relief.

4. Tooth Whitener

Dip a cotton swab in full-strength vinegar and use it to wipe your teeth every morning and every night to lighten stains on the enamel. Rinse your mouth with water after swabbing to eliminate the acidic residue.

5. Weight Loss Helper

Apparently, taking 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water every day can assist with weight loss: the acetic acid contained in the vinegar helps your body break down fat, and reduces the triglycerides in your blood.

6. Insomnia Relief

Many people swear that a drink made with hot water, a tablespoon of a.c. vinegar, and honey (to taste) helps them get a more restful night’s sleep. This is another one that isn’t scientifically proven, but experimenting with it could be rather delicious.

7. Detox

Apple cider vinegar has high levels of potassium, which can have a clarifying, detoxifying effect on the body. Taking apple cider vinegar in water 3 times a day can apparently alleviate the symptoms of sinus infections, allergies, sore throats, and even candida.

8. Household Cleanser

Pour a full cup of apple cider vinegar into your toilet bowl, let it sit for half an hour, then scrub with a brush and flush away. Not only will it clean and disinfect the bowl, your bathroom will smell like apples for days.

Use undiluted a.c. vinegar on counter-tops and other surfaces to disinfect them and leave them smelling fresh and apple-y.

Dissolve a tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in a spray bottle of water for homemade “Febreeze”: spray it into the air to combat unpleasant odours, or spritz it lightly on furniture to eliminate pet smells.

9. Insect Repellent

Some people swear that the changes in body pH due to daily doses of this vinegar will fend off mosquitoes, but this has yet to be proven scientifically.

A 50/50 mixture of cider vinegar and water can be sprayed onto your pets (and their beds) to help repel fleas, and it can also be sprayed around windows and doors to keep ticks out.

10. Garden Help

Full-strengh a.c. vinegar poured onto stubborn weeds will kill them without poisoning the soil around them. You can use a diluted vinegar solution (1:8 ratio of vinegar to water) to raise the acidity in your soil for azaleas and rhododendrons to thrive in, and if you dilute that even further and add some sugar to the mixture, you have home-made plant food.

Add a few tablespoons of a.c. vinegar to a gallon of water and then transfer it to a spray bottle; you can use this spray to treat black rot and fungus issues on roses, and to fend off aphids.

If you’re taking apple cider vinegar internally, it’s important that you use the highest quality vinegar available. Organic would be the best option, but if you can’t get your hands on that, then don’t hesitate to shell out a few extra dollars for a good product. For topical uses (like for facial toner), you can use a lower-quality vinegar, and the cheapest products on the market are fine for house-cleaning and gardening purposes.

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