Apple's senior VP of software engineering hypes Java
Berlin (May 29, 1997) — Apple Computer Inc.’s Worldwide Developer Conference in San Jose, CA, earlier this month was a turning point for the company, said Avie Tevanian, senior vice president of software engineering at Apple.
“Until that day Apple wasn’t saying much, just taking the lumps for mistakes that had been made,” Tevanian said yesterday at Internet World Berlin. At the San Jose conference, Apple spelled out a shift in the company’s strategy for securing a future of the Macintosh systems platform.
Tevanian made the comments in a roundtable discussion with journalists after his keynote speech in which he explained the development strategy for Rhapsody, the operating system for the next generation of Macintosh computers, and its Yellow Box component.
Tevanian also reiterated Apple’s standard remarks about its future and the Internet.
“The Internet and Java are going to be our savior,” Tevanian said. “We are going to be a winner when it comes to the Internet.”
One of Apple’s advantages is the large number of creative Internet content developers who remain loyal to Apple, Tevanian said. Sixty-four percent of companies doing professional Web authoring use Macintoshes, he said, adding that 25 percent of all Web browsers now in use are running on Macs, and 15 percent of all Web servers are Macs.
Responding to a question about speculation that Apple might give up hardware production after Rhapsody comes out next year, Tevanian said there were no plans to do so.
Asked about concerns that Apple might be bought or even go bankrupt, Tevanian said he was not personally worried, but he was worried about customers thinking Apple will not make it. He also said he thinks it is a good sign that other companies, such as Oracle Corp., have expressed interest in buying Apple.
Tevanian admitted the company hasn’t been nearly as good as Microsoft Corp. in articulating its products and strategy, but he said efforts were being made to beef up Apple’s marketing department. He agreed with one reporter’s suggestion that Apple needs clever people in its marketing department, a statement that drew applause from the mostly German journalists present.
Tevanian told journalists the company’s immediate, top goal is to become profitable, and despite a corporate restructuring announced in February and layoffs announced in March, the company still has enough employees to reach that goal and expand into new territory.
Apple can be reached at (408) 996-1010 or on the World Wide Web at http://www.apple.com.
