July 15, 1985: Aldus PageMaker Completed!

Most people with a bent for technology are aware how Xerox influenced Apple's development of the GUI. What many tech geeks are unaware of is how Kodak made the Mac a viable business.

Sales of the nascent Mac had been in line with expectations for the first few months, but once the early adopters stopped buying sales shriveled. What was lacking was a compelling use for the tiny machine. That changed when Kodak bought out Atex. Atex employed an individual named Paul Brainerd and the buyout left Mr. Brainerd unemployed.

Freed from Kodak Paul Brainerd designed Aldus Pagemaker. A program that, in conjunction with a Mac and a LaserWriter, made professional layouts accessible to to the masses and, just as importantly, exposed many people to the Mac who would never had seen the machine otherwise. Corporations bought the Mac for layouts and bought more for the ease of use. Aldus sent out the final version of Pagemaker, the program that saved the Mac, on July 15, 1985.