Steve Jobs' Legacy

[jww]

I first heard about Steve's passing via a tweet from my oldest son last night, and have reviewed a number of articles, essays and videos about the man since. I remember back at the commencement of my career starting a new job working for the new Computerland store in St. Catharines, Ontario. We sold Apple II and IIe computers. I got my first (and only) computer programming experience with an Apple. It was the UCSD version of Pascal on a IIe with a dual disk-drive set up. This was technology at its finest back then (1981/82).

I remember the blow-up in his leaving Apple. I recall his salesmanship introducing the NeXT box -- a unix-based device which would turn graphics computing on its ear - and would end up as the motivation behind Silicon Graphics as they went on to produce some of the best hardware of the 90s.

Then the surprising -- he goes all silent, and seemingly out of nowhere puts up $10M to front Pixar. Toy Story I gets released, and few even knew that Jobs was the primary business force behind it.

Then even more surprising - he returns to Apple at the turn of the century, and within a very few years they release the iMac, and take over the Sony Walkman market with the introduction of the iPod. New devices come over the next decade that will change life as we know it forever.

But here's the genius of the man to me .... it was never about the gadgets -- although his modern-day PT Barnum revealing of the iPod Nano was classic Jobs. It was about his ability to somehow know what devices people wanted/needed to fulfill their aspirations. Yes - I seriously mean this -- anyone could listen to him speak and think "He really gets me!" No -- for me it wasn't the devices - it was how he had the foresight to figure out what silent need required attention and at what time.

From carrying our entire music library in a pocket, to filling the niche between smartphone and laptop with a tablet, he made us want to be more adroit at what we did, and helped us do it more seamlessly.

This man has left an indelible mark on our planet and has a place in the history books. Can hardly wait for his bio to be released later this month -- eerie timing, that.

[drmoss_ca]

It's been clear this was coming for some time, but still a shock. I think his secret was his absolute willingness to be as picky and hard to satisfy as it took to get the best products out of his engineers, even if it meant crossing boundaries of manners and politeness. He wanted those products to be transparently easy to be use, and so slickly designed that we would lust after them. Digital toasters. I don't know if it was SJ who dreamed up the vision of iTunes, which is the best invention of his second sojourn at Apple. Not only something like 40 billion songs downloaded, but it is the way you interact with iPods, iPhones and iPads. Making a Windows version was very smart, and has allowed far higher sales of the iOS devices than if they were Mac only. (Though come next Wednesday, they won't even need a computer to set them up at all.) I'll miss his inspiring keynotes, and hope the company retains enough of his mindset to continue thinking different(ly). I'd hate to see Apple become another boring tech company.

Thanks, Steve. We had a blast.

Chris
Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

[KAV]

Humanity periodically tosses out a new invention that changes our way of life if not removing the wretched IN from humanity. I think Jobs and his near forgotten partner got most of it right.

[Quarterstick]

But here's the genius of the man to me .... it was never about the gadgets -- although his modern-day PT Barnum revealing of the iPod Nano was classic Jobs. It was about his ability to somehow know what devices people wanted/needed to fulfill their aspirations. Yes - I seriously mean this -- anyone could listen to him speak and think "He really gets me!" No -- for me it wasn't the devices - it was how he had the foresight to figure out what silent need required attention and at what time.

That is what really set him apart for me. With his return to Apple it was not just about newer or better technology, it was about about what people need/want and how to make it simple.

He clearly raised the bar. I imagine it will be some time before another innovator of his caliber comes along.

[stagger]

I never heard of him till he died. I reckon I live a sheltered life.

[Steve-o]

I've seen a few statements elsewhere comparing Jobs to Einstein and Edison and I find those over the top. In a world where billions have yet to make even one phone call to someone else, singling out Jobs for genius in envisioning the iPhone seems misplaced.

But I think few people realize the influence Jobs had outside of Apple. If Apple had not been so successful, would we have had Windows 3.0 (and the subsequent jolt it gave the PC industry)? I remember when iMacs were available in several colors -- and seeing tons of translucent non-computer products (drinking glasses, furniture, etc.) in similar colors within the space of months. (Who was ever influenced by "beige" or "platinum" or "putty" PC colors?) I suspect we will never know how many people turned from illegal music downloads to buying their music from the iTunes Music Store -- and, similarly, the disruption created in the music industry as people bought only the tunes they wanted to hear and not entire albums padded with lesser tunes. Smartphones and tablets existed before Jobs gave them attention, as well, though none of them were making people part with their money the way iPhones and iPads do -- and Apple set the bar for the competition, which has responded and given consumers more good choices than ever.

Jobs had his "personality-challenged" side; he was no saint. But his vision has made at least the developed world a different (I would say better) place.

[Julius_Rodman]

Great mix of technology and niche marketing. The balance could be anywhere from 5 to 95 percent towards marketing.

I use a few of the products; I don't think I'm better than others because I do, there is no self-righteous or groovy feeling about beating "others" when I do.

[jww]

Like I said in my earlier note - I saw Jobs as more of a PT Barnum than an Einstein.

Showmanship/salesmanship, whatever, the guy knew how to make the masses ooh and ahh like few have ever been able to.

[GA Russell]

I see good news and bad news.

The good news was that in a time when self-made billionaires are typically Wall Street paper traders, Jobs was actually "in the business" (really multiple businesses - computers, music, telephones, film animation). I believe that the businessmen who are "in the business" move the world forward, and we need more of them.

The bad news was that he was known for abusing his employees, completely disregarding the Golden Rule. That is not a small defect.

[95%]

I've followed Steve Jobs' career since the late 1970's. My thoughts have always been that he was just a regular guy like you and me, except that he had some bright ideas which he had the opportunity to implement on a grand scale. I've been impressed by two things that were reported after his death. One was this passage from a 2005 commencement address:

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It is life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but some day not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true."

These are not the words of an egotist or a light thinker. He had had his first brush with death and was given a new lease on life, yet he knew it was only for a period of time. 

The other was a comment he made late in his life about his children, to the effect that they were more important to him than anything else he had ever done. We can all relate to that, I think, and find him to be a sympathetic figure rather than some sort of a superhuman genius.

[Baloosh]

...

The other was a comment he made late in his life about his children, to the effect that they were more important to him than anything else he had ever done...

If that were true, he wouldn't have denied paternity of his first child, refused to pay child support by perjuring himself, and let her and her biological mother exist on Welfare for 2 years while he claimed the child wasn't his.

Jobs was a great innovator... but as a "family man" he is hardly someone to aspire to.

[95%]

But at least he aspired to be a good family man, even if in some respects he fell short of the mark. Steve Wozniak gave him credit as a family man in an interview last week. That he had feet of clay, however, there is no doubt and no surprise.

[brothers]

I had heard of him of course, but all of the information posted here is news to me, because I've not had any interest in him, truthfully. The last few posts made me wonder if maybe he came to realize as time went by, that he'd done harm to this child and his/her? mother, and was able to make them financially secure before he died.

[Bargepole]

...

The other was a comment he made late in his life about his children, to the effect that they were more important to him than anything else he had ever done...

If that were true, he wouldn't have denied paternity of his first child, refused to pay child support by perjuring himself, and let her and her biological mother exist on Welfare for 2 years while he claimed the child wasn't his.

Jobs was a great innovator... but as a "family man" he is hardly someone to aspire to.

If I was called to account for all the stupid thoughtless things I did in my late teens/early twenties, I doubt if I'd come off any better than Jobs, and probably much worse. The difference is, he had already started making a big impact on the world while I was just farting around.

[Baloosh]

If that were true, he wouldn't have denied paternity of his first child, refused to pay child support by perjuring himself, and let her and her biological mother exist on Welfare for 2 years while he claimed the child wasn't his.

Jobs was a great innovator... but as a "family man" he is hardly someone to aspire to.

If I was called to account for all the stupid thoughtless things I did in my late teens/early twenties, I doubt if I'd come off any better than Jobs, and probably much worse. The difference is, he had already started making a big impact on the world while I was just farting around.

Did you deny the paternity of one of your offspring, and refuse to help him/her and his/her mother? Or did you just drink a bit too much, get into a few fights, and maybe steal a car one night or something similar?

There's a far cry from typical teen/20s rabblerousing and outright being a despicable person by ignoring your child. If you equate those two concepts, then I don't know what to tell you... other than the passive/aggressive "I'm sorry your as big a scumbag as Jobs" when it comes to family. There are mistakes, and then there are complete windows into a person's character. If you know any history about Jobs at all, in both business and personal life, he was a downright ass. However, I'll be the first to admit that he stood alone as the driving force behind making shiny, cool gadgets that first-world people want to use.... no doubt about that.

(Being a good parent isn't something you "aspire" to -- it's something you are required to do, from the moment your child is born. If you fail that, then you deserve to be called out on it.)

[wenestvedt]

In a world where billions have yet to make even one phone call to someone else...

A point: in what we call the Third World, cell phone use is surprisingly high. A phone may be shared among a group, or per-call access may be sold (something like a payphone) by the true owner, but a lot of "poor" people do have a phone. Some years ago a childhood friend of mine was sent to India by Microsoft to research this very topic.

Heck, five years ago there were two Billion phones in use worldwide! http://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/p ... ling_x.htm

Other than that, I agree with you. Jobs' willingness to say "No" to his designers & coders over and over and over brought a sharp focus to Apple's products that forced the whole industry to keep up. And eventually it forced several industries to keep up.

[maskaggs]

I was listening to a podcast of Leo Laporte's "The Tech Guy" radio show a few days ago, and he made an excellent point: in terms of technology, Jobs was great. Aside from that, no, he probably wasn't a good person. One can be great without being good.

On that note, I highly recommend checking out Laporte's multiple media offerings through the TWiT network of streaming shows and podcasts. For anyone interested in technology, they're well worth your time and quite fun to boot.

[Bargepole]

There's a far cry from typical teen/20s rabblerousing and outright being a despicable person by ignoring your child. There are mistakes, and then there are complete windows into a person's character.

Telling them apart isn't so easy, though.

If you know any history about Jobs at all

Er... I knew the fellow. Not that well, but enough that I'd hesitate to judge him. On particulars, yes; in the two years when he denied being Lisa's father, he behaved very badly. In his business life, people were in awe of his instinctual grasp of what the public would want before they knew they wanted it. Steve Jobs traded on that to get what HE wanted.

In general terms -- that there's a window into his entire personality which proves the man was an ass, or a "despicable person", -- I'd be far more wary. Judge not, etc. So we must agree to disagree on this.

[matt321]

Another opinion... this from Market-Ticker forum
http://market-ticker.org/

Steve Jobs? Oh sure, he "gave you what you wanted." But he did it, and turned Apple into a household name with massive profits, by exploiting child and near-slave labor to the point that their contract factories in China have had to put nets up so you can't commit suicide by jumping off the buildings!

[Baloosh]

Telling them apart isn't so easy, though.

For some. For others, it's quite simple.

If you know any history about Jobs at all

Er... I knew the fellow. Not that well, but enough that I'd hesitate to judge him. On particulars, yes; in the two years when he denied being Lisa's father, he behaved very badly. In his business life, people were in awe of his instinctual grasp of what the public would want before they knew they wanted it. Steve Jobs traded on that to get what HE wanted.

In general terms -- that there's a window into his entire personality which proves the man was an ass, or a "despicable person", -- I'd be far more wary. Judge not, etc. So we must agree to disagree on this.[/quote]

It's not just this anecdotal incident. More of a series of incidents, throughout his life. I agree that we simply disagree. At least we can agree on that.