Pictures of Apple

A little background about the place: Apple Computer, Inc. is located in Cupertino, California, at the northwestern end of Silicon Valley. It and Hewlett-Packard are perhaps the two companies most responsible for the term "Silicon Valley" in the first place, although companies like Oracle and Intel are also based in the area. Apple's main headquarters is a building named "Infinite Loop", which consists of six connected buildings surrounding a central courtyard. I believe Infinite Loop opened in 1993 or 1994. Apple owns many other buildings in the immediate vicinity.

The photos below are of the common areas at Apple, places that dozens (if not hundreds) of visitors to Apple on official business see every day. (The one exception to this is the photo of my cubicle.) So if you're hoping to spot something secret in the pictures, you'll be disappointed; it's just a beautiful campus.

	The main driveway to Apple off De Anza Boulevard in Cupertino. (72k)
	The main entrance to building 1 at Infinite Loop. (56k) I often see tourists taking photos of the front of Apple right here, usually with someone posed next to the big, bitmapped "1". Yes, all six buildings have a low-res number in front of them. Indeed, many of the signs on campus - including the restroom "Men/Women" signs - are in this low-res font.
	The atrium of Building 1. (48k) The atrium is terrific, with a cylindrical section composed entirely of windows sticking into the central courtyard, and covered in windows for its roof, as well. It's softly lit at night and is most impressive at that time.
	The banner currently hanging in the Building 1 atrium. (48k) Apple hangs a huge banner of the main poster for its biggest recent hardware release in the atrium. The banner can be lowered mechanically to be changed (I saw them doing this once). When I started at Apple in March, they had the 5-flavor iMac banner there, one side saying "Yum." and the other "iCandy." The iBook banner ("go go go") replaced it in July, and then this one earlier this month.
	The reception area of Building 2. (40k) Each of the six building at Infinite Loop has a different theme to its decor in terms of color, layout and building materials. The hardwood floors are the key here; they exist throughout the hallways on all floors of Building 2, making it perhaps the most visually appealing of the six buildings.
	The reception area of Building 3. (48k) You can't easily tell from this photo, but the physical elements of this reception area are not holding up so well. The plaster seems to have chipped more easily and the place just looks kind of old. I sometimes wonder if the receptionist feels a little trapped by being in the middle of the hallway rather than against one of the side walls. Building 3 faces Interstate 280, and there's also a large "Rebirth of Cool" banner outside that building, visible from the freeway.
	The reception area of Building 4. (40k) Building 4 contains the cafeteria, and also the "Town Hall" auditorium seen here on the right. It has several other meeting rooms and isn't used for R&D so far as I know. The stone tiles in the floor give it an interesting look.
	The hardware museum in Building 4. (40k) Apple has several interesting things on display around campus, of which these are the most public. On the left is (I believe) an Apple I (as in "one"), the first line of computers built by Steves Jobs and Wozniak. Only a few hundred were ever constructed, I understand. On the right is an Apple Lisa, Apple's first GUI computer, which cost about $10,000 when it came out, and did not do well. It basically looks like a beige TRS-80 Model III. Behind the Lisa is a wood carving of an Apple III; I'm not sure what the story behind that one is.
	More of the hardware museum. (36k) On the left is an Apple //c with - I guess - a carrying case for it. I'm not sure why it's interesting enough to be on display. On the right, however, is Macintosh Serial Number 1, the first Mac (so I'm told) to roll off the assembly line, 15 years ago. Behind the Mac is - I think - the logic board for an Apple I.
	The front of Building 5 at Infinite Loop. (112k) This is the building where I work. so I see this view a lot. By the way, notice that all the windows at Infinite Loop are tinted blue. When I started working at Apple, I commented that they should pull all the windows out and replace them with iMac colors, one for each building. With the introduction of the iMac DV Special Edition, there are now six colors, so it would fit!
	The reception area of Building 5. (48k) Building 5 is one of the less stylish buildings, with smooth gray tile on the floor and a strange yellow-and-brownish checkerboard pattern for the walls.
	My cubicle. (48k) Yeah, I keep it fairly neat, for the most part; not too many papers cluttering the table, a neat row of books (mostly college textbooks) and lots of stuff on the walls (which makes for a labor-intensive move whenever I change offices, or, at least, it did back at Epic). I have a window which overlooks the shorter Building 4, and gives me a view of the northern end of Silicon Valley, which is not bad. I also rarely get direct sunlight, which I've decided I like.
	The reception area of Building 6. (64k) I rather like this one. Like The atrium in Building 1, it has trees growing inside.
	A view of the central courtyard from outside Building 6. (80k) Infinite Loop is shaped like an oval, with Buildings 3 and 6 at opposite ends. In this shot, the camera is almost exactly facing Building 5.
	The outdoor amphitheatre. (52k) Shot roughly from outside Building 5, facing Buildings 2 and 3. The amphitheatre is sometimes used for company gatherings. People also play volleyball on the grass beyond the amphitheatre.
	A view of the courtyard from outside Building 3. (64k) Here we're facing Building 1; that's the atrium sticking out into the courtyard. On the left you can see the patio outside the cafeteria of Building 4.
	Other large banners of Apple promotional posters are displayed around the courtyard. Here are the four presently on display. (52k, 48k, 56k, and 68k, respectively)
	Finally, Apple also has a sand volleyball court and a basketball court on campus. (52k) I haven't yet used them, but I've seen people playing basketball here. Taking this picture was the first time I really got close to the court, and I noticed that there are about eight basketballs - of varying ages - lying around outside the court.

Infinite Loop predates Steve Jobs' return to the company. It was built to be the R&D campus, with the executives located down the street at Cupertino City Center. The story I've heard is that when Steve assumed the iCEO position, he decided he wanted to be closer to R&D, and for the executives to also be more in touch (potentially) with development, so they all moved to Infinite Loop and City Center was sold to the city.

As you can see from the banners in the courtyard, Infinite Loop has many balconies at various points in its buildings. For the most part, these are unused, so several of them have been partially or completely covered up by the banners. Sometime in the next year, Airport will be installed throughout campus, and I wonder if allowing the campus to go wireless will cause this to change. People will get Powerbooks or iBooks and sit on balconies or even on the grass in the courtyard to work. Though if it becomes chronic, I bet Apple will forbid it. Still, it's a nice thought; one afternoon a week during the lovely California summer just go downstairs and sit on the grass to work.

So, there: a little virtual tour around the Apple campus. Don't say I never do anything for you!