I have wondered why that fact has been ignored while people gush over the phenomenal success of Apple. They wouldn’t have even been around if Gates hadn’t bailed them out.
Because that isn’t what happened maybe.
Because absolutely none of what he or you have said is true. None of it is a "fact."
Here are the facts:
Apple had 1.2 Billion dollars in CASH and another $200 million in other liquid assets and under $60 million in short term debt at the time that Microsoft was forced to invest in Apple by buying $150 million in restricted, non-voting, preferred stock to settle a lawsuit they essentially lost.
While Apple had posted a single quarter of loss ($67 million), by the time of the settlement Apple had posted two quarters of profits. Even had they still been posting losses, Apple could have done so for almost 18 more quarters before depleting their cash reserves. They were not in danger of going under.
This was reported in the contemporary press at the time. What you are doing is repeating the face saving spin rumors that Microsoft's FUD Machine started spinning almost two years later. You can search out and read on the web the three interlocking agreements between Apple and Microsoft which were approved by the court that included the payment from Microsoft to Apple, the cross licensing of technology at Microsoft's disadvantage, and the benefits that Apple gained because of the lawsuit settlement. They are public records now.