NeXTSTEP underwent an evolution into OPENSTEP which separated the object layers from the operating system below, allowing it to run with less modification on other platforms. NeXT managed to maintain a business selling WebObjects and consulting services, but was never a commercial success. It was based on on the Mach kernel and BSD, an open source implementation of Unix dating back to the 1970s, and included the innovative Enterprise Objects Framework database access layer and WebObjects application server development environment. The object-oriented operating system NeXTSTEP, on the other hand, had a more lasting legacy. NeXT hardware, while somewhat innovative for its time, was more expensive in relation to the rapidly commoditizing workstation market, had several design problems and quirks which made it unpopular, and was phased out in 1993.

When Apple Computer sidelined Steve Jobs in 1985, he attempted - with funding from Ross Perot and his own pockets - to create the 'next big thing': the result was NeXT.

Version history preview mac os