Merged Steve Jobs has died.

[Aepervius]

If a forum can be said to have character, this morning I'm disappointed in the character of this forum.

Others I frequent have kept similar threads respectful.

I should not paint with too broad a brush, but the handful of members here who see this an opportunity to bash Apple or make jokes does in my mind tarnish this forum, in the same way that a few boorish people can ruin a party for everyone.

Signing out from this thread - see you guys around in others.

As somebody in another forum said (paraphrasing) :
"People I don't know die all the time. He happened to be rich and famous with selling expensive consumer Devices. Why should I take special care ?".

Quite direct but right on.

What *surprises* me a lot is that people *seem* to care as much as if he was a rock star, or the next messiah (ETA : or their own beloved cousin). Personality cult indeed.

 

[Ethan Thane Athen]

The first truly "personal" computer. It killed laptops.

So, yeah.

Sorry, I can't agree with that. The ipad is just a laptop without a lid. Nice user interface and great marketing I grant you but 'killed the laptop'? Laptop sales are still extremely healthy (as are netbooks - just bought one for my daughter because it was half the price of an ipad, not locked down / restricted and did everything she wanted it to...oh and had a lid!).

Thank you though - until your post I didn't understand the claim by some posters (and indeed the BBC news) that Jobs had invented the personal computer. I'm sure it was a considerable surprise to IBM as well. If we're using such a loose definition of 'personal computer' though then I guess anything can be claimed.

 

[Darat]

Sorry, I can't agree with that. The ipad is just a laptop without a lid. ...snip...

I think what it is fair to say is that they came up with a product that took tablet computers into the mainstream commercial world.

 

[Ethan Thane Athen]

That has surprised me, that people have this personal attachment to someone so remote. What on earth is that based on? I can understand being a fan, even a vocal fan of your favourite piece of hardware or software but an attachment to the CEO of the company that produces it. Weird. (ETA: I know he stepped down as CEO).

This!

You'd think they'd actually worship the Brit designer who was actually responsible for all the Apple products they eulogise over.

 

[Ethan Thane Athen]

I think what it is fair to say is that they came up with a product that took tablet computers into the mainstream commercial world.

Can't disagree with that, however, that is not what they are actually saying, even if that's what they mean. The statement on the BBC news this morning included the words 'who invented the personal computer'. There was no clarification of what they meant by that statement.

Still the BBC news is sadly not what it once was...

Mind you, I'm still completely bemused by the attraction of the ipad - either I'm missing something or it was a hell of a marketing job.

 

[Arisia]

The Apple/Mac GUI certainly influenced Microsoft when they were developing Windows.
And it's undeniable that Steve Jobs lead Apple to it's position as the most valuable high-tech company in the world.
The amount of positive attention he would get every time he walked up on a stage in his mock-turtleneck and jeans to make a product introduction must have made many a politician jealous.
He was a facilitator for the great innovations being developed at Apple, who also held several hundred patents in his own right.

He leaves a wife and four children, and millions of others will miss him, too. RIP, Steve Jobs.

 

[sarge]

Huh. I am suprised that I paid attention to the story of Jobs' death. Typically, I wouldn't care.

I own some Apple products. My iPad is one of my favorite devices. I replaced my iPhone with a better, cheaper device. I've never used a Mac for anything. So, I guess I'm not an Apple fan - in fact, the idea of being a "fan" of a company stricks me as silly.

On the other hand, Jobs was almost singlularly good at what he did.

 

[nvidiot]

Huh. I am suprised that I paid attention to the story of Jobs' death. Typically, I wouldn't care.

I own some Apple products. My iPad is one of my favorite devices. I replaced my iPhone with a better, cheaper device. I've never used a Mac for anything. So, I guess I'm not an Apple fan - in fact, the idea of being a "fan" of a company stricks me as silly.

On the other hand, Jobs was almost singlularly good at what he did.

What exactly did he do?

 

[Lamuella]

The Apple/Mac GUI certainly influenced Microsoft when they were developing Windows.

This is no doubt true, but the Mac GUI was itself heavily inspired by the GUI on the Xerox Star.

Jobs was an excellent marketer, and had some genuinely good ideas, but some Mac enthusiasts talk about him with the kind of shining eyed wonder usually reserved for pop stars or cult leaders, and that's a little weird.

 

[Spindrift]

I'm sorry to see Steve Jobs pass, but let's get over the "Edison" hyperbole. Jobs was the marketing guy, not the inventor of anything.

 

[BenBurch]

Hear, hear. Apple was a joke when he came back and took charge. If nothing else, he was a masterful marketer.

I don't doubt they had an unimaginative product line and a software evolution strategy that made no sense, but they also were sitting on a few billion dollars in cash and had no debt. So the people running it during his wanderings in the desert were not too incompetent.

BTW, did you see the story a couple weeks back that Apple had briefly eclipsed Exxon as the highest market capitalization company?

 

[kajata]

What exactly did he do?

I'd say he brought products to market and made people want them and once those people owned them they were tremendously satisfied with them.

But of course, trying to pin down what the CEO of one of the two most valuable companies in the world does (or did) would take more than a few sentences.

 

[timhau]

BTW, did you see the story a couple weeks back that Apple had briefly eclipsed Exxon as the highest market capitalization company?

They're still within $10 billion of each other, which isn't a huge difference between two ~$350 billion companies.

ExxonMobil still holds the World Record for highest quarterly profit by a publically listed company, though. It's from the days of $150/barrel oil; Apple isn't even particularly close.

 

[Darat]

As part of my Big Society work I think I'll be going to pick up rubbish around some streets tonight: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-15195444

Orders now being taken for refurbished iPads, iPods and iPhones.

 

[tyr_13]

That has surprised me, that people have this personal attachment to someone so remote. What on earth is that based on? I can understand being a fan, even a vocal fan of your favourite piece of hardware or software but an attachment to the CEO of the company that produces it. Weird. (ETA: I know he stepped down as CEO).

It's displacement caused mostly by Apple's cult like marketing. People love their Apple products. No, literally. In a recent experiment people were show pictures of their Ipod or their ring tone, and the researchers expected the areas of the brain related to addiction to show up. Not so. The areas of love and compassion lit up, almost identical to when they were shown pictures of their romantic partners. They credit Jobs with this feeling. Imagine if the man who set you up with your wife died, or your husband's father passed.

Job's actual accomplishments were good enough and I think the fanboy imaginings of his life disrespectful.

 

[Darat]

It's displacement caused mostly by Apple's cult like marketing. People love their Apple products. No, literally. In a recent experiment people were show pictures of their Ipod or their ring tone, and the researchers expected the areas of the brain related to addiction to show up. Not so. The areas of love and compassion lit up, almost identical to when they were shown pictures of their romantic partners. They credit Jobs with this feeling. Imagine if the man who set you up with your wife died, or your husband's father passed.

...snip...

Astonishing - any links? (Not that I don't Belleville you but it sounds very interesting.)

 

[RoboTimbo]

If you're going to crack jokes about a man's death moments after he's died at least have the decency to be remotely funny.

RIP, Steve. Thanks for developing all the cool stuff.

You're right, it should have been iDied.

 

[kajata]

You're right, it should have been iDied.

No, that sucks too.

Now take The Onion's take...Panicking Apple Board Of Directors Attempts To Restart Steve Jobs

Now that's how it's done. But that's why they write satire for a living and you are content with putting an "i" before a word and calling it a day.

 

[sarge]

What exactly did he do?

Seriously?

His name is Steven Jobs. A significant portion of the planet knows his name and identifies with his products. He was almost singularly good at creating demand for his products.

I don't give a crap about him myself, and I don't really care about Apple products specifically, but I can't think of anyone that has recently been more successful at inventing problems for their solutions.

Think about it. The flagships of Apples line of products (Ipod, Iphone, and Ipad) are not really that much better at most functions than the offerings of other companies, and in some regards they are inferior. Yet, they enjoy a cult-like following, and Steve Jobs was most responsible for the mass appeal of these products. Had he not returned to Apple, there might still have been an iPod/Pad/Phone, but it is far from certain they would have been the market leaders they currently are.

 

[Fishstick]

Now that's how it's done. But that's why they write satire for a living and you are content with putting an "i" before a word and calling it a day.

iSee.