MemeMachineGo!

While double-checking the 140K in the previous entry (fact checking! your clue to quality blogging!) I found this loving and ludicrously detailed history of the Apple.

The success of the Apple II established the company as a major player in the early days of the personal computer revolution.

The Apple II maintained the company while it floundered with its attempts to create new computer platforms (the Apple III, the Lisa, and the early days of the Macintosh). It was strong customer demand for Apple's flagship product, the Apple II Plus, that kept them going until the Mac platform became self-sustaining. The Apple II saved Apple Computer itself!

The Apple II survived longer than any other computer platform from the early days. It was in continuous production for sixteen years and seven months, from April 1977 through November 1993. This covered the run from the original Integer BASIC model to the Apple IIe and the 16-bit Apple IIgs, with most software backward compatible with older models. No other computer made by a single company can make such a claim.

The Apple II was the foundation for many companies that survive to this day. This includes gaming companies such as Electronic Arts and Sierra On-Line. Even mighty Microsoft once benefited from Apple's business, when in its early days its cash-flow had almost dried up.