This doesn't have much to do with the theme of this blog but, Ah Shit. I've personally been using Steve Jobs computers since I bought a NeXT Station and laster printer in 1991 with $10k of my fellowship money in grad school. I still have it: last time I checked, it still worked. Except for a couple of brief unhappy intervals when I was obliged to use Windows systems, I've been immersed long hours every day in Steve Jobs approved environments ever since. It's impossible not to grieve his passing, and copiously. He has almost single-handedly stood for the idea that technological devices should also be an artistic and harmonious fit with the human psyche. He was the world's greatest product manager.
It isn't going to be the same without him.
I *haven't* used Apple products, since the Mac IIs in computer labs at the university. I was never willing to shell out the big bucks for the Apple version of things.
ReplyDeleteBut I always thought the NeXT was sweet. I'm jealous you have one. And you have to hand it to Jobs - when most people had written Apple off, he wanted back in and brought it back. Apple didn't always invent the cool new features in their products, but *he* made *sure* Apple did it right.
I'd bet he wasn't easy to work with. But we're all a little worse off without him in the world.
Yes, the loss of Jobs marks the end of an era and he was great in many ways.
ReplyDeleteI have an iPhone 4, an iPad, a MacBook Air, and I'm typing this on an iMac with the Core 7 processor. I've been involved with Apple products for about a year.
That said, I'm no computer scientist (though I began my programming experience on an IBM 1130 in Fortran 2) and, from a user point of view, I have to say that Windows (I'm currently on XP at work) is a significantly better user experience.
I can enumerate the ways that I find it to be superior but this is probably the wrong time to go into it. In my defense, I'll mention that I wouldn't have brought it up but for your mention of your "brief unhappy intervals." In any event, may he rest in peace.
Amen.
ReplyDeleteJobs was a once in many generations phenomena. How many entrepreneurs get axed from their company for "lack of management skills" (hint: lots), then buy the PIXARs of the world for a few million (later sold for $7 billion), then get rehired to the top job, then completely remake the company into the most valuable corporation in history?
ReplyDeleteOne would think such stories only come from Hollywood...
How could it be the same without him?
I only hope I will have something worth working for right up to my death.
Rest in peace Steve.
Henry Ford did not invent the automobile nor did he invent the assembly line but he made both work better than anybody else and changed America.
ReplyDeleteI think Jobs was actually more inventive.
If imitation is one of the highest forms of flattery, Jobs was imitated not once but many times.
In this age, we need more people like him who are insanely brilliant.
Could Andrea Rossi be the next great inventor or is it a hoax:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nyteknik.se/nyheter/energi_miljo/energi/article3284823.ece
What's your opinion on this Stuart?
Factories making sought-after Apple iPads and iPhones in China are forcing staff to sign pledges not to commit suicide, an investigation has revealed.
ReplyDeleteArticle
BEIJING, China: As the rest of the world waxes nostalgic with tributes and accolades for Apple's retiring CEO Steve Jobs, the factory workers in China who got sick while making Apple's touchscreens remain unmoved.
Six months ago, factory workers in Suzhou poisoned two years ago by toxic chemicals at the factory wrote to Jobs directly, asking for his help in getting medical care and compensation for their illnesses and lost work time. They never got an answer from Jobs.
Article
Apple is simply "Beauty with Brains" I hardly eat Apple but its part of my life 24hrs 365 days & always, I am loving it. Hat's of to Mr Steve
ReplyDeleteI've been using wintel for quite a long time, mostly because I have it at work so I know it really well, partly because hardware & software were cheaper and more plentiful. Now my wife wants to know if it might be more immune to slowing down due to malware.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if this is the place for a conversation about Mac vs Win...but if it's not, could someone suggest the right place/thing to read?