Taking a Bite out of the Apple

This book has easy language any teen could understand. As a designer just graduating University this book helped me gain more confidence in my work and teach me the ways of efficiency within the industry, great read if you’re an Apple fan. Amazing read if your a designer too! 10/10 recommend.

I was fortunate enough to work with Rob early in my career as a copywriter. His authenticity, honesty and sense of humorwas only matched by a big, bold, beeaufiful talent. This book gives the reader a very relatable taste of that. Because Rob makes it a point to telegraph the intense journey he went on creating the Apple logo. The result isn't just a good read. It's a great life lesson in "think before you leap". You can't crank out a logo or an ad or a novel or a play without an IDEA. In other words, Taking a Bite out of the Apple is a tale told by an artist, signifying everything it takes to be a success,

Ein sehr dünnes Büchlein im Stil von * book on demand*. Habe ich für die Recherche eines Referats benötigt und ja, dafür war es hilfreich, denn die Infos - ganz offensichtlich von Rob Janoff selbst* waren sonst nirgendwo im Netz zu finden. Als Biographie würd ich das nicht sehen. Der Inhalt würde sich auch für einen Blog eignen, ein bissl viel Selbstbeweihräucherung, wenige handfeste Fakten. Kommt für mich rüber wie die Geschichte eines Träumers, der einmal Glück gehabt hat und heute immer noch wehmütig zurückdenkt. Vermutlich nicht die Realität, aber das ist es, was das Buch erzählt.

Rob Janoff’s Taking a Bite out of the Apple is a memoir recounting the graphic designer’s journey to designing the groundbreaking Apple logo, as well as the career highlights and lessons learned following this unanticipated yet monumental accomplishment. It is also the first installment in Hearing Others’ Voices, a series highlighting today’s revolutionary thinkers across a variety of disciplines and cultures.Although Janoff focuses on his expertise in graphic design and brand identity, there are still relevant takeaways for the general populace, regardless of field – namely, the value of authenticity and a curiosity for thinking outside the box.Janoff credits authenticity and a curiosity for thinking outside the box for not only his success, but also the success of Steve Jobs. He greatly likens himself to the late Apple co-founder, which gave him an uncanny ability to relate to his then-client. In the early days of Apple – and in the early days of Janoff’s career as a graphic designer – both men are countercultural in both appearance and thought relative to the rest of their peers in the late 1970s. This willingness to go against the grain ultimately drove Jobs to start Apple, the world’s first user-friendly, home-based computer – and Janoff to explore unconventional methods for arriving at what would become the world’s most recognized logo in tech.Equally valuable and inspiring is the connection that Janoff bridges between art, design, and humanity, as evidenced by his more recent design projects. Although the arts tend to be overlooked and deemed as unimportant, they have an indispensible role in brand identity. The right icon design humanizes a brand, conveying an important message about its values and its target audience.Overall, I rate Taking a Bite out of the Apple 4 out of 5 stars. While the inception from Apple – and evolution of graphic design – from the eyes of Rob Janoff were both a welcome treat, there were some editing and formatting errors in the text that slightly impaired the reading experience. Nonetheless, I still recommend this text to anyone with an interest in graphic design, brand identity, or general tech history.