One tends to forget, but 25 years ago things were really different. Your phone and computer—if you had one—were just tools, no more or less sexy than a filing cabinet. There was also no such thing in America as a real café, a place where you could work or just relax, and be welcome either way. And the idea of a store that could sell you virtually anything you could imagine as you sat at home was science fiction. Then came Apple. And Starbucks. And Amazon.
Image: AP In 1997 Steve Jobs, Apple's acting chief executive, announced that the company--buoyed by cost-cutting and strong demand for its new computers--surprised Wall Street by once again showing profitability.
