> Apple–1 manuals re–created

Not a copy, but a meticulous remake

OUT OF THE 200 or so Apple–1 computers ever built, under 70 are known to survive — only six in working order. For retro computing enthusiasts, there have been replicas of the first Apple computer around for some time. But when the guys at retroplace.com, an online marketplace for video games based in Munich, Germany, started selling replica PCBs online, they soon realized that although there are also reproductions of the original manuals available, these are all printed from poor–quality scans on cheap laser printer paper. Not good enough, they thought. So they lovingly re–created the original manuals for the world’s first home computer from scratch.

They didn’t just scan the originals — they didn’t even just typeset the text. They laboriously kerned every single character manually to produce a re–creation true to the original, down to a fraction of a millimeter. All the schematics had to be redrawn, too. They even re–created the original Byte Shop logo stamp, with the permission of former owner Paul Terrell.

After some 100 hours of painstaking work, the end result is breathtakingly accurate re–creations of the Operation Manual (with fold–out schematics!), the Preliminary Basic Users Manual, and the Cassette Interface Manual. As a bonus, they also re–created the first full–page ad for the Apple–1, all printed on exquisite Munken Pure paper (which has a nice ivory tint to it).

All manuals are available for purchase from retroplace.com/apple-1. Tell them Mac|Life sent you!