You probably didn’t know him personally, but Steve Jobs has impacted your day-to-day life more than you can realize.
His death Wednesday has already sent shock waves throughout social media and news organizations — the world is in mourning.
Losing Steve Jobs is devastating. His hand has been felt in every major computing breakthrough of the past three decades. The Macintosh, released in 1984, was the first computer to use a mouse and have icons instead of command prompts. His study of calligraphy led to the invention of fonts for personal computers. Jobs believed that computers weren’t just machines; they were tools for normal people to do great things.
In 1985 — at least five years before the Internet existed in any discernible form — Jobs said, “The most compelling reason for most people to buy a computer for the home will be to link it into a nationwide communications network.”
Jobs’ genius wasn’t limited to computing, either. He purchased a struggling computer graphics firm from George Lucas in 1986. He renamed the company Pixar. In 1995, Pixar’s “Toy Story” changed the way an industry saw animation and established the art of computer graphics.
And then, of course, he pioneered the invention of the iPhone — a device so inventive it sparked the smartphone market overnight.
Jobs lived his life the way he wanted to, without letting anyone or anything get in his way. He dropped out of school after one semester and started Apple Computers out of his garage when he was 20 years old. He set a standard for living life the way you want.
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking,” Jobs said in his 2005 Stanford commencement speech.
“Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
Farewell, Steve Jobs. The world is emptier without you.
I bought my first Macintosh, a Mac Plus, in 1984. It came with 1 MB RAM and I added a 30 MB external hard drive. I'm proud to say that 27 years later I'm still using Macs. Obviously, I have a lot of fondness for Apple products.
They are simply elegant in design and use, highly reliable and functional, and fun.
I give all the credit to Steve Jobs for having the vision to create beneficial products that changed our culture and society. I hope Apple continues to carry forward that philosophy. That will be a fine tribute to Steve Jobs' legacy.
Not entirely a fan of his company's products, but I have got to admit, he's really shaken up the tech industry in the recent decade. It'd be a wonder what gadgets might look like today if he had never been there.
While I agree that Job's products have had a profound impact on the world, and that they are great products, I am puzzeled by the Daily Cougar Editorial Board's view of Jobs. Steve Jobs was the embodyment of everything the "Occupy" movement opposes (a movement the Coogar ed board supports). Corporate greed, check. Offshoring of jobs to Chinese factories that underpay workers who toil away in hellish conditions (often including children), check. Avoidance of US taxes through the exploitation of the tax code, check. Censorship of content on its platforms, check. Abusing the legal system to silence its critics (lawyering bloggers into bankruptcy), check. The list goes on and on. But I guess that doesn't matter since the I-phone is awesome. Way to have principles guys!