I hope that was a charity auction otherwise that outcome is quite ridiculous and quite sad. $900k could be better spent.
The item has no inherent value to anyone other than the status of aquiring it.
This is a fine example of why the majority of people live in poverty, nothing more.
As I said elsewhere in the replies, if someone spent $900k on crack and whores, I'm sure you'd be right up there judging the purchaser and drawing arbitrary comparisons againt "you could have done X or Y with it" and I bet none of them were "buy an Apple 1 assembly"
For reference, I do practice such things. My entire computing and mobile outlay has been about $250 in the last 5 years.
That's more than some people make in a year.
Not sure why I'm feeding you but there it is.
You can't simply transfer money from luxury goods to food and expect money to be 'worth' the same.
The net effect of taking that cash out and burning it or spending it on an Apple 1 assembly is the same. It devalued the moment you bought it as you have shrunk the market.
Could have thrown it at a charity.
How so? Now, whoever sold the Apple 1 assembly has $900k. What will they do with that money? Presumably not burn it.
This Apple 1 continues to exist (as does the money paid for it), and may be sold again - likely for much more than it cost the current owner. It didn't devalue, being a unique historical artifact (ok, 1 of about a dozen functioning Apple 1s), instead it likely increased value precisely because he won't sell until someone is willing to pay more for it - and with the increasing influence of Apple, and increased prices paid for artifacts, there likely will.
Your grasp of basic economics is...fractured.
I'm not sure anyone knows the absolute correct way to allocate goods, services, and resources. Charities don't always prove beneficial to the cause they are supporting and investors and corporations can do a lot of good.
Who knows where this money will go eventually, but it certainly won't magically burst into flame. Perhaps preserving and apple 1 will provide a huge benefit to society one day?
People thought computing and lasers were pointless endeavors for decades as well.
As an artist walks through an art museum and can see the progression of ideas from antiquity to the present. As an engineer you can walk through the history of technology at The Henry Ford, from a black smithy to a tour of a modern assembly line and most all stops in between.
You would be hard pressed to think of a better home for this machine. 900k is a lot of money, but I am glad it will be in a great museum, rather than at a private collector's home.
But if someone threw $900k at crack and whores then I'm sure you'd have a moral judgement to make?
This is no different to my opinion.