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Report from the line

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Bill Atkinson in line to buy his iPhone

So, it’s been non-stop in line here. I haven’t had my hands on a keyboard until 3 a.m.

Why did I wait in line in Palo Alto and not the more sexy San Francisco? Easy, I knew there’d be more geeks in line here. And the line did not disappoint.

First of all, Bill Atkinson is in line here. He was Apple’s first software developer. He wrote Mac Paint. Hypercard. Did the windowing system. And much more. Most historians believe he’s one of the top software developers Silicon Valley has ever seen. And that’s no hype.

He’s been telling folks in line all sorts of old Macintosh stories (he was on the original Mac team). We streamed his conversation live and it really was incredible. Loren Heiny was watching our live stream tonight and said the conversation was awesome. Plus his photography (what he’s passionate about now) is stunning. We’re going to try to do a photo walking with him soon.

Steve Gillmor filmed the conversation and we’ll have it up on PodTech.

Anyway, I’m going to try to get some sleep and see ya in a few hours.

There’s 125 people in line at 3:36 a.m.

Also in line? The Quicken Mac Team. Zooomr. Smug Mug. TechMeme. Quite a few others.

I have a few photos on my Flickr account. I’m sure there are other ones too. Plus we’re streaming live still over on Ustream.

Comments

  1. Its interesting and astonishing to know that your son and you were 1st ones In line……

    Since Im from India we have to wait for a long time till the iphone comes here.

    Will be following your blog closely to see how the iphone mania picks up.

    Priya
    http://www.watblog.com

  2. Its interesting and astonishing to know that your son and you were 1st ones In line……

    Since Im from India we have to wait for a long time till the iphone comes here.

    Will be following your blog closely to see how the iphone mania picks up.

    Priya
    http://www.watblog.com

  7. If your going to buy the overly hyped iPhone please do so from me

    I think the title speaks for itself. I’m just straightforward asking you to make your iPhone purchase directly from me. There are many of you out there that have been overtaken by the hype. Your going to buy it anyway. So why not help me pay the rent …

  21. Fake: not sure. He seems like the kind of person who won’t call and beg for one. He made a fake wood iPhone, though, as soon as he saw it just to “get an idea of what it’d feel like in his hand.”

    It’s not cold here. We never even needed our sleeping bag. San Francisco is a lot colder, I hear.

  23. Fake: not sure. He seems like the kind of person who won’t call and beg for one. He made a fake wood iPhone, though, as soon as he saw it just to “get an idea of what it’d feel like in his hand.”

    It’s not cold here. We never even needed our sleeping bag. San Francisco is a lot colder, I hear.

  31. According to the SF paper, Woz will also be waiting in line for an iPhone — because he wants to. It is telling that Robert and Fake Paul assume people are being tortured by Steve Jobs at the drop of a hat.

  32. According to the SF paper, Woz will also be waiting in line for an iPhone — because he wants to. It is telling that Robert and Fake Paul assume people are being tortured by Steve Jobs at the drop of a hat.

  33. His photographs are stunning. I can imagine this experience — the people, the geekery, the comraderie, is a once-in-a-lifetime.

    I’ll live vicariously through the vid feeds.

  34. His photographs are stunning. I can imagine this experience — the people, the geekery, the comraderie, is a once-in-a-lifetime.

    I’ll live vicariously through the vid feeds.

  35. Do not buy that Version, there will be a new and better version of the IPhone presented in Europe.

    http://www.newswireless.net/index.cfm/article/3466

    It also has implementes 3G, the latest and fasted technology in the celluare market.

    If you compare the EDGE, which is implemented in the old iPhone, to HSPDPA, which is the faster version of 3G, you get results like these charts.

    http://blog.treonauts.com/BroadbandComparison.gif

    Currently, I’m online with 3G and can have up to 3,6 Mbit/s as a download speed, as well as a higher upload Speed than EDGE.

    So do not buy old stuff, with is out of date on Monday!

    Best regards Jörg

  36. Do not buy that Version, there will be a new and better version of the IPhone presented in Europe.

    http://www.newswireless.net/index.cfm/article/3466

    It also has implementes 3G, the latest and fasted technology in the celluare market.

    If you compare the EDGE, which is implemented in the old iPhone, to HSPDPA, which is the faster version of 3G, you get results like these charts.

    http://blog.treonauts.com/BroadbandComparison.gif

    Currently, I’m online with 3G and can have up to 3,6 Mbit/s as a download speed, as well as a higher upload Speed than EDGE.

    So do not buy old stuff, with is out of date on Monday!

    Best regards Jörg

  49. “Its interesting and astonishing to know that your son and you were 1st ones In line……”

    ???

    Scoble’s coverage of this event has been really spectacular — the best out there far as I can tell. But not, of course, because of his position in the line… I mean, hey, if Greg Packer can do it…

    P.S. The idea of the Woz standing in line for an iPhone makes me very sad for some reason.

  50. “Its interesting and astonishing to know that your son and you were 1st ones In line……”

    ???

    Scoble’s coverage of this event has been really spectacular — the best out there far as I can tell. But not, of course, because of his position in the line… I mean, hey, if Greg Packer can do it…

    P.S. The idea of the Woz standing in line for an iPhone makes me very sad for some reason.

  51. Jeff: yep, that’s Patrick on Drudgereport. He’s in lots of newspapers too.

    DBL: CNBC says that Woz would be able to get one next week, but he couldn’t wait.

    Bill Atkinson told me that he could have gotten a free one too, but he wanted to “be part of the scene.” He said he missed Woodstock and wasn’t about to miss iPhone launch.

  52. Jeff: yep, that’s Patrick on Drudgereport. He’s in lots of newspapers too.

    DBL: CNBC says that Woz would be able to get one next week, but he couldn’t wait.

    Bill Atkinson told me that he could have gotten a free one too, but he wanted to “be part of the scene.” He said he missed Woodstock and wasn’t about to miss iPhone launch.

  53. Re: the pic.
    I think putting a bumper sticker on your shirt for a photo op does more harm than good. cafepress.com can do single prints with jpegs.

  54. Re: the pic.
    I think putting a bumper sticker on your shirt for a photo op does more harm than good. cafepress.com can do single prints with jpegs.

  55. I will be honest I don’t get it. It seems to be a phone that offers less than the competition, less expandable and it’s weakess capabilities are as a phone. This really seems to be a case of snake oil or the emperor’s new clothes…certainly the first reviews tend to confirm that conclusion.

    Have fun

  56. I will be honest I don’t get it. It seems to be a phone that offers less than the competition, less expandable and it’s weakess capabilities are as a phone. This really seems to be a case of snake oil or the emperor’s new clothes…certainly the first reviews tend to confirm that conclusion.

    Have fun

  58. I just came across this clip of the today show:
    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19499360

    The host had trouble answering her iPhone - she claims she was pushing the answer button but it wouldn’t work.

    The reason I mention this comes back to the touchscreen discussion - no matter which way Apple spins it, I think there’s something to be said about knowing you’ve pressed a button, especially for non-techies.

  59. I just came across this clip of the today show:
    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19499360

    The host had trouble answering her iPhone - she claims she was pushing the answer button but it wouldn’t work.

    The reason I mention this comes back to the touchscreen discussion - no matter which way Apple spins it, I think there’s something to be said about knowing you’ve pressed a button, especially for non-techies.

  61. In regards to the guy commenting on the 3G iPhone rumors, that’s for Europe. Europe uses different 3G frequencies than we do here in the US. Thus, a 3G iPhone for Europe would still be back on EDGE here in the States, so it’s not necessarily “out-dated”.

  62. In regards to the guy commenting on the 3G iPhone rumors, that’s for Europe. Europe uses different 3G frequencies than we do here in the US. Thus, a 3G iPhone for Europe would still be back on EDGE here in the States, so it’s not necessarily “out-dated”.

  63. Wow, a chance to talk to Bill Atkinson…if I knew he’d be there along with all of the other famous techy geeks, I would have flown in from Dallas just to go stand in line even though I don’t plan on getting an iPhone (yet).

    Unfortunately, I’m just not one of those “early adopters”. I hate to get the first version of a car…they end up making it better a year or two after they come out with it, anyway. ;)

    Also, I’m not so sure about the glass and inputting/typing. Since I’m on the road so much and need to dial numbers and respond to emails, I personally prefer the fact that I can actually feel the keys. But maybe it’s something you have to get used to?

  64. Wow, a chance to talk to Bill Atkinson…if I knew he’d be there along with all of the other famous techy geeks, I would have flown in from Dallas just to go stand in line even though I don’t plan on getting an iPhone (yet).

    Unfortunately, I’m just not one of those “early adopters”. I hate to get the first version of a car…they end up making it better a year or two after they come out with it, anyway. ;)

    Also, I’m not so sure about the glass and inputting/typing. Since I’m on the road so much and need to dial numbers and respond to emails, I personally prefer the fact that I can actually feel the keys. But maybe it’s something you have to get used to?

  65. Martin: what negative reviews are you referring to? The ones I have seen, starting with Mossberg in Wall Street Journal, have all been varying degrees of positive… ranging from warm all the way up to ecstatic. You must be reading “Windows Mobile Journal” or something.

  66. Martin: what negative reviews are you referring to? The ones I have seen, starting with Mossberg in Wall Street Journal, have all been varying degrees of positive… ranging from warm all the way up to ecstatic. You must be reading “Windows Mobile Journal” or something.

  67. I’d like to see some photos of the Apple store in Toronto, with nobody waiting in line.

  77. [...] mere moments from now and with people like Robert Scoble standing on line in Palo Alto (”because that’s where all the geeks will be“), I thought this cartoon from bLaugh expressed my feelings about the frenzy pretty [...]

  78. [...] the next game console gizmo releases this fall. They are all there at the Apple store…podcasters (Robert Scoble), the Zooomr CEO (Thomas Hawk), the CTO (Kristopher Tate), legendary Apple developer Bill Atkinson, [...]

  79. Buy an iPhone and a Grameen Village Phone!

    While some stand in line for their chance to buy an iPhone, others walk up to six miles to make a phone call.

    If you are buying an iPhone, may I humbly suggest you review the benefits of funding a Grameen Village Phone as well.
    “Access to afford…

  80. [...] Aside from the device itself, I’m also finding myself fascinated with the blog coverage of the people waiting outside Apple stores. There’s something about how obsessed the bloggers are with how obsessed the iPhone early adopters are that is pretty entertaining. And apparently, The Woz is first in line at the Valley Fair Apple Store. And Bill Atkinson is in the Palo Alto line. [...]

  81. Are you going to give to blog later with more on the conversation yesterday with bill atkinson?

    Palo alto line looks way cooler than any others … have fun

  82. Are you going to give to blog later with more on the conversation yesterday with bill atkinson?

    Palo alto line looks way cooler than any others … have fun

  83. [...] iPhone is officially out on the East Coast. Scoble has an update over on his blog from the Palo Alto store in California. Engadget has a multi-line blog post going on that they are [...]

  89. [...] Most of the people queuing up wanted it because it’s the latest cool shiny gadget – and that’s fine, but it doesn’t float my boat. But it was interesting to spot a few interesting faces in the line, such as Netvibe’s Tariq Krim, who were buying it “solely for the API”. Tariq doesn’t even live in the US but can see the benefit of having one to build out Netvibes onto. [...]

  90. Good grief you are boring Scoble.

    Please read a book and get technical rather than just talk mind-numbing trash.

  91. Good grief you are boring Scoble.

    Please read a book and get technical rather than just talk mind-numbing trash.