Steve Jobs, 1955-2011

Even rare individuals hiding under rocks probably heard the news of Steve Jobs’ death yesterday. It was all over. I was at my parents’ house, talking to my dad in the kitchen when I noticed ABC breaking into the locally syndicated program for a special announcement. My dad saw it, too, and we both walked to the living room to hear the news. After a brief tease about the world losing a great man who has changed many lives — “Oh, shit,” I thought, “Who is it? Mandela?” — Terry Moran announced the death of Jobs.

I was saddened to hear of Jobs’ passing, but as a lifetime user of Apple products, someone who vividly remembers the company’s dark days of the late-nineties, I was more surprised by the fact Jobs’ death was news worthy of a special announcement.

A few days ago, I read this eulogy for MacDesktops.com, a website I have often used to find cool desktop pictures. This part encapsulates what I felt when hearing of Jobs’ death yesterday:

When I started MacDesktops in April of 1998, Apple Computer was going out of business for 10 years if you believed the pundits and analysts. Today, Apple Inc is the highest valued technology company in the world (maybe the highest valued US company period depending up the time and day). In 1998, Mac users were an oppressed minority, struggling to keep our toe holds at work. Today, Mac users are not questioned about our choice of platform. In 1998, Mac users had to go to Mac news web sites to find out about new products. Today, Apple Inc gets weeks of headlines in every major newspaper leading into and trailing out of each announcement.

The drastic change outlined in the excerpt had a lot to do with Jobs’ return to Apple. (A caller on NPR suggested Jobs’ NeXT actually overtook Apple, not the other way around.) His pioneering ideas, arguably unoriginal, turned Apple’s fortunes 180 degrees and helped make the company what it is today (something that could be akin to Big Brother). Back in 1997 or ’98, Apple’s directors were so scared of a hostile takeover that they discussed swallowing a “poison pill.” Now the company could buy an entire continent worth of countries. Back in the day, the only way to buy a Mac was through Apple itself or through one of many computer warehouse catalogues. Now there are Apple Stores in every major retail center and college campus in the country. (Iowa City always had “WEEG,” which sold Macs and Mac-formatted software to UI staff and students.) What used to be a chosen alternative, a way to “think different,” took over the world of home computing and is now transforming the way we read (regrettably), shop, listen to music, watch TV, and communicate.

Regardless, Jobs was a great thinker and hard worker. His vision will be missed, and I plan to continue using the machines he first built in his garage long into the future. (Ironically, I may at one time not have a choice.)