Steven Jobs was born on February 24,1955，in San Francisco，California，and was adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs.In 1961 the family moved to Mountain View, California.At that time people started to refer to the area as “Silicon Valley”．
As a child, Jobs preferred doing things by himself, not interested in team sports or other group activities.He enrolled in the HewlettPackard Explorer Club. There he saw his first computer at the age of twelve. He was very impressed, and knew right away that he wanted to work with computers.
At that time almost all computers were so large that one could fill a room, and so costly that individuals could not afford to buy them.Advances in electronics, however, meant that the parts of a computer were getting smaller and the power of the computer was increasing.
By 1980 the personal computer era was well underway.Apple was continually forced to improve its products to remain ahead, as more competitors entered the marketplace. Apple introduced the Apple Ⅲ， but the new model suffered technical and marketing problems.It was removed from the market.
Early in 1983 Jobs unveiled the Lisa.It did not sell well，however, because it was more expensive than personal computers sold by competitors.Apple's biggest competitor was International Business Machines (IBM). By 1983 it was estimated that Apple had lost half of its market share ( part of an industry's sales that a specific company has) to IBM.
In 1984 Apple introduced a revolutionary new model, the Macintosh.The Macintosh did not sell well to businesses，however.It lacked features other personal computers had, such as a corresponding high quality printer. The failure of the Macintosh signaled the beginning of Jobs's downfall at Apple.
Late in 1988 the NeXT computer was introduced, aimed at the educational market.The product was very userfriendly，and had a fast processing speed, excellent graphics displays，and an outstanding sound system.Despite the warm reception，however, the NeXT machine never caught on. It was too costly, had a blackandwhite screen, and could not be linked to other computers or run common software.
小题1:When did Steven Jobs first get the chance to catch sight of a computer?
A．In 1955.
B．In 1961.
C．In 1967.
D．In 1980.小题2:Which of the following statements is RIGHT?
A．All the computes used to be large enough to fill a room.
B．Before 1980, Apple was not successful in the field of personal computers.
C．Steven Jobs was born in Silicon Valley.
D．Apple and IBM competed for sales of personal computers.小题3:According to the passage, the Apple Ⅲ________.
A．was popular among the young people
B．turned out to be a failure
C．caused more competitors to come into the market
D．could be linked to a printer小题4:Which of the following leads to Jobs's downfall at Apple?
A．The Apple Ⅲ.
B．The Macintosh
C．The NeXT.
D．The Lisa.小题5:One of the reasons why the NeXT computer didn't become popular is that ________.
A．few people could afford it
B．it was not fast enough
C．it was not easy to use
D．it lacked super sound system
