My first office was in the QuickTime group, located on the third floor of Building 3. I shot this video just shortly after I joined Apple. It will give you a little idea what it looked like inside the greatest company in the world. The video begins in the courtyard, entering through the ‘back’ door of building 3, heads up the elevator to the third floor, passes a shared meeting area, glimpses the marcom department and finally ends up at my office.
Here’s the clip (12 MB in QuickTime MPEG-4 format; iPod and iTunes compatible.) I mirrored it on three different servers; pick one:
Neat, Mike. The lobby’s alot different now they have security to the right at a desk and anyone can walk in… but not get much further. I’ve been to the bathrooms to the left of the lobby past the elevators. I was amazed to see how big the inside of the Loop is! Must be such a nice place to work.
Hope there’s more great little goodies like this! Maybe you’ll bundle a DVD with your book?
Nice video Mike.
Cool, I’ve seen a few similar pics of inside Apple around the net – I like the little names they put on your door, I want my name on a door!
I don’t know how you can stand to watch those videos and not long to be back in the magical land of Cupertino. Personally, after my trip, I can’t wait to get back there!
Do you miss being at Apple? What is the thing you miss the most?
B. Nystedt: Keep in mind he’s walking from inside the courtyard into building 3. You’re probably thinking of building 1 where there’s a large lobby and a security desk on the right as you come in from the parking lot.
Great video, Mike. Where is everyone? Are the hallways always that quiet, or was the video shot on a weekend?
John – Because of my odd commuting arrangement, I was often at the office at night and on weekends. I believe this video was shot on a Sunday.
Mike:
What was this video shot with? There’s an odd sense of motion in it that doesn’t appear to just a standard handheld camera shake, but it doesn’t seem quite smooth enough to be from a steadicam, either… Were you using image stablization? Whatever it is, I’m not sure if I like the effect… it gives a very odd sensation, almost like you were walking aboard the S.S. Apple, sort of trippy…
Jeff – Very astute observation. I had just gotten my Steadicam and was still learning how to use it. It turned out that I had the balance settings wrong, and I got a lot of strange ’swaying’ when I’d move (as when I come through the front door.)
I can’t seem to view the clip… it just gives me a QT dialog with the Server 1 graphic… sorry, I’m probably being really stupid.
Could anyone help?
Thanks…
Adam – Don’t try to download the movie first (because the movie that is on the webpage is just an image of the button.) When you click one of the buttons, QuickTime Player should launch and then the movie should load.
It looks like you didn’t even have a window!? I honestly couldn’t work in that kind of space.
Oliver – I’m afraid you couldn’t work in most of the offices in silicon valley then. About a third of the offices at Apple have windows (my rough guess).
Same building my office was in for 4 years. I was on the first floor. I was the Loc Eng for QuickTime for four years. I worked with ‘Ted Nugent’s Niece’ a lot.
I didn’t have a window at Apple either. I prefer no windows. Makes it easier to see the computer screens and it gets me to walk outside for breaks more often.
Aloha
I’m drying my eyes, almost I cry.
First, the video has a quality I think never I’ve seen. How you get this high soft motion? Amazing, congratulations Mike. Music choice remembers me a lot of the part of Pirates of Silicon Valley when SJ shouted to Bill Gates, don’t you?
Really, SJ did achieve his purpose of join Computer and Art. And that I’ve not been here…..
I guess that Mac fanatics like me, who haven’t been here, can exaggerate a little, really is a job place, but it’s incredible.
Please go on put videos of Apple installations please.