Some of the Apple aficionados out there may be familiar with the backstory of the iconic warning sound, at least with one of the many versions of the story. The true version was shared by the developer who created that and other system sounds.
Back at the end of the 80’s when System 7 was being written (two versions later than System 5 that came with my first Mac), Apple Computer was being sued by Apple Corps (The Beatles’ music company) over their name, so their lawyers told them to steer clear of anything to do with music. The developer made a xylophone sound he wanted to call Chime, the lawyers said ‘too musical’. He then jokingly proposed ‘Let It Beep’ before deciding on Sosumi, as in So Sue Me, in honor of the ongoing litigation and the name stuck.
Now, what the heck does any of that have to do with photography? That developer also created the System 7 sound for a screen capture. That same sound is used as the ‘shutter sound’ for the billions of iPhones out there taking pictures.
The source? A recording of the shutter sound of his own Canon AE-1.
*popularity as determined by shutter sound, based on research conducted by @neuroanatomist on November 8, 2023
Back at the end of the 80’s when System 7 was being written (two versions later than System 5 that came with my first Mac), Apple Computer was being sued by Apple Corps (The Beatles’ music company) over their name, so their lawyers told them to steer clear of anything to do with music. The developer made a xylophone sound he wanted to call Chime, the lawyers said ‘too musical’. He then jokingly proposed ‘Let It Beep’ before deciding on Sosumi, as in So Sue Me, in honor of the ongoing litigation and the name stuck.
Now, what the heck does any of that have to do with photography? That developer also created the System 7 sound for a screen capture. That same sound is used as the ‘shutter sound’ for the billions of iPhones out there taking pictures.
The source? A recording of the shutter sound of his own Canon AE-1.
*popularity as determined by shutter sound, based on research conducted by @neuroanatomist on November 8, 2023
