When Apple was making a comeback from being all but dead, the logo was a quick way to identify other members of your tribe. And you could walk into a coffee shop and get an instant tally of how Apple was doing. It was really precarious for a time, and then after some months it became reassuring and then some more months and you could stop worrying altogether.

Hard to believe that was ever the case!

Iconic photo from 2007: https://macdailynews.com/2007/10/02/lecture_hall_photo_shows...