Welcome to the latest chronicle of history for the Macintosh. This effort tries to establish the parameters of Apple's wonderful PowerBook line. Included in this pack, is a chart that helps compare all eight Macintosh PowerBooks to date. Four versions of the chart have been provided, all in PICT format. The two "Display" versions are for viewing on your monitor or showing on screen in training sessions. The text in these charts are bitmapped only, allowing for faster screen redraw and less memory allocation. One uses more color and is designated "Clr". The other two versions of the chart are for printing to a 300dpi printer and use Times and Chicago fonts (supplied in TrueType on System 7 disks). Once again, one uses more color (for Deskwriters or PaintJets) and is so designated. These two versions require more memory to open, so please allocate the necessary memory it will take from your graphics program.
The information that I have used is from what ever I could find on Apple Link, reference books, and America Online. I do have a question on the parameters of the screens (how fast they are, and how the contrast is rated), but I have used the stats supplied by Apple (most 100/140/170 info coming from a tech sheet titled "Macintosh PowerBook Technical Details" with B.Gee 8/4/91 Rv..6 in the lower right hand corner). In particular, the speed and contrast between the PB170 and PB180 screens are troubling. The 180 has a shadow mask that seems to enhance the contrast, but is not reflected in the numbers, and I don't think that the PB170 screen is twice as fast as the 180. I also wanted to have a category on the material used to create the PowerBook case (ABS Plastic for the 100 and Polycarbonate for the 140/145/160/170/180), but I couldn't find a reference for the new PowerBook Duos. If anyone has information on these topics, or anything contrary to what I have provided, please E-Mail me as the "Toymaster" with the data and where I can verify it.
I hope this chart satisfies a need for giving the PowerBook user (or potential user) a closer look into the features and differences of the members of the PowerBook line. Like my previous effort "MacHistory", I have found it very useful as an Apple reseller in helping interested customers make an informed decision about their purchase. I appreciate all the comments and suggestions I have received on "MacHistory" and hope that others could find the time to do that with this effort. This chart will be upgraded when necessary or when new PowerBooks come out.
