Steve Jobs dies at 56

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Very sad news to report from California today. Apple has confirmed that Steve Jobs has died after an extended illness.

For all the happiness.

For all the smiles.

For all the wide-eyed wonder that you brought into our lives.

Thank you, Mr. Jobs.

Our thoughts, and our prayers go out to his family, his friends, and his employees.

A stellar example of the American dream.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=No1MxAnHuJM[/youtube]

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http://www.apple.com/
A simple tribute for a complex man.
Prayers.

RIP Mr. Jobs

Not unexpected but sad none the less. RIP Steve

We all have lost someone so very special…Rest in Peace Mr. Jobs.. Prayers to his family what a loss…. God Bless.

Jobs should be an inspiration, and and an example of how to live, for all of us.
All his life he was a pioneer that was not afraid to take risks and dream large.
Yet when staring down the face of terminal illness he went out with class, and grace.

Truly a remarkable man. A giant among men.

Well, Steve Jobs, I bought the Apple IIE and now I have one of your latest and greatest; it’s a damn good machine. I have one of your phones as well.

I won’t get all sentimental and flowery and there are those who know I can. No, you lived life well and made a name for the rest of time, not bad, not bad at all. Her’s a little poem that should give you a chuckle as you cross over. It will illustrate the fun you brought to so many lives with your wondrous machines. Maybe someday we will have a laugh together, but I hope, it won’t be too soon.

Barnes And His Noble Noodle

Fair haired maidens, know me as Barnes
My airs as an author sets off their alarms
Ah, but real prose comes not so easy
My outward appearances, seem sleazy

For I am an author in pretension
So involved in useless revision
But your eyes tell you the lies
we who dress the part still try

To write among giants in the big bookstore
It’s not our fault, life’s played a cruel joke
It is easy to walk through the glass door
Much harder to write and not be heart broke

Aye, to sit amongst the great collection
Admiring the philosophers, men of wit
Asking favors of coy muse and direction
With Mac and coffee on a table, here I sit

Primed with black coffee ready for inspiration
Props are in place, God knows I am in position
Now with fabled Mac, I pose, fingers at attention
Surely, I am not deficient in classical erudition

My coffee is black and bold, my Mac is of latest model
Ignored by little fairies of prose drives men to the bottle
But I will have sweet cake and coffee instead
Tomorrow’s failure, I will yet refuse to dread

Tomorrow is just another day
Once more I will join the fray
I know no fear, For I have my Mac
Once again I will sit ready to attack

Catch you in the later!

” WELL DONE ” (Saint Peter)

Steve,
You have directly affected the consciousness of hundred of millions around the world through your uncommon grasp of the most critical elements guiding the human interaction with technology.
You opened new paths in aesthetics, transforming mundane technologies into design marvels which each of us wanted to take home.
You set standards of quality and reliability that all others could only strive to emulate, but never imitate.
You established a standard for every executive running a large corporation, completely ignoring the corrupting siren songs of Wall Street brokerages. You couldn’t be bought. That maintenance of independence enabled a clarity of thinking and an unadulterated direction of America’s greatest company.
It was a pleasure to have participated in those earliest days of the ride.
All best wishes as you continue your voyage of discovery.

Steve Jobs was one of the greatest American inventors of all time. RIP.

I’m a big fan of Jobs, and his inventions. However, I think his biggest legacy is the one seldom mentioned, and that is how he was an ‘unwanted’ child by a mother who was selfless enough to carry him to term and give him up for adoption (google his Standford Commencement speech from you tube and hear it in his own words).

I wish every women who claims “My life, my body, my decision”, probably while using an Apple product, would stop and at least be grateful that Job’s biological mother was selfless enough to realize he deserved a chance at life just like the rest of us.

Also can’t help to note the irony in his life about college. It was so important to his biological mother that he get a college education. I wish more attention would be given to the fact that college isn’t for everyone, and even more so, especially not necessary for many bright and free-spirited minds. Sadly, our culture makes it a “prereq” for all, while at the same time, “indoctrinating” and leaving a lot of people with a lot of debt and not much to show for it.

RIP Steve, grateful to have lived in your time!

RIP Steve Jobs. Prayers for his friends and family.

@Patricia:

I wish every women who claims “My life, my body, my decision”, probably while using an Apple product, would stop and at least be grateful that Job’s biological mother was selfless enough to realize he deserved a chance at life just like the rest of us.

Also can’t help to note the irony in his life about college. It was so important to his biological mother that he get a college education. I wish more attention would be given to the fact that college isn’t for everyone, and even more so, especially not necessary for many bright and free-spirited minds.

To go along with that, a libertarian friend of mine posted the following comment while debating those who took exception to his original wall status on FB [which he posted as a reaction to all the anti-corporate liberal friends worshipping Steve Jobs as some great philanthropist while demonizing Bill Gates (a philanthropist)]:

Just to be clear:

Apple and/or Steve Jobs/Apple did NOT invent the home computer (let’s not forget Radio Shack’s TRS-80, Commodore’s PET, VIC-20 and the all-time best seller, the 64!).

Apple didn’t invent the Internet (Al Gore did, after traveling back in time and secretly influencing J.C.R. Licklider, DARPA, and the engineers at UCLA and Stanford!).

Apple didn’t invent the mobile phone (ARP in Finland and/or Motorola).

Apple did develop the first mobile browser (for the Newton) but it was before Jobs returned…

And naturally we all know that texting existed prior to the mobile phone (pagers), and mobile email and messaging was really brought to fruition by Palm/Rim/Blackberry.

What Apple did was invent a GREAT MP3 player, and then turned that great gadget into a fun novelty phone (that wasn’t really usable as a phone for many people, thanks to their dealings with AT&T). After 4.5 revisions, the iPhone is finally becoming a serviceable phone.

I will say this: it’s impressive that Jobs was (at least in name) on the patents or patent applications for 338 devices.

But what I find more impressive is that Jobs and Apple developed a cult-like following of anti-corporate zealots, despite being one of the most corporate, monopolistic, and litigious companies around.

When you can get tree hugging disestablishmentarians to think of you as non-corporate, while you hold several monopolies and are raking in billions of dollars on highly overpriced elitist technology merchandise, you’re a friggin’ genius.

And Jobs was most definitely THAT genius.

Steve Jobs showed the citizens of the United States what you can accomplish when you are innovative, take risks, and go unafraid into the world. His memory will live on with the accomplishments he have given us. Rest in Peace.

He touched the lives of the world. His contributions will be remembered forever!! RIP Steve

For sure Jobs was a marketing genius.

I also forgot to mention how impressed I was that he was anti-porn, the main reason he once told an emailer why the iphone didn’t have FLASH (among the other obvious reasons). When the emailer mocked him, Jobs reminded him of how destructive porn is to family life, of which he wanted no part in participating.

As for the anti-corporate zealots, go figure being that Apple is the most valuable corporation in America. It makes about as much sense as the “anti wall streeters”, who, if they would only go down the yellow brick road and get a brain, would realize that wall street gave more money to Obama than any president in US History. As Ann Coulter said, “If they are going to blame the republicans, at least they should give us the money.”

But speaking of “brainless” that more proves my point as to how college is now designed for most to be unable to think for themselves. This whole wall street “we aren’t sure why we are here or at least here and not the white house”, protest is nothing more than “group think” of the left, Alinsky politics, and Obama’s hand behind the curtain.

Somewhat off topic, and despite the fact we are not all gifted with the genius of Job, wanted to make the point that this college “group think mentality” is one more thing killing America.

A realistic portrayal of a CEO who was a unique tyrant, might be more appreciated by Jobs, the quintessential Capitalist.

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/279325/right-kind-tyrant-rob-long?page=1

The son of a Muslim immigrant, a counter-culture LSD-dropping hippie who later said that the psychedelic experience was one of the most important formative events in his life, a convert to Buddhism, a life-long liberal, and a strong supporter of Barack Obama… Guess who?

Groucho Marx

@Skookum, #17:

*S* Alas, no cigar. The duck will not descend bearing a check for $100.

Jobs was an amazing guy who defied categorization. Any quick assumptions we might make about him would as likely as not turn out to be wrong.

And even now, brings us a new app:
iDEAD

Jobs changed the world, something that can’t be said about many men.

I’m going to break copyright on this one, but it’s so good that I have to do it:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/12-lessons-for-us-all-from-the-life-of-steve-jobs-2011-10-07

From Marketwatch. 12 Lessons We Can Learn from Steve Jobs

By Brett Arends, MarketWatch

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Are there any life lessons for the rest of us from the career, and legacy, of Steve Jobs?

The death of the Apple co-founder has dominated the news from Cupertino, Calif., to Kuala Lumpur. Many are focusing on the way his products and services changed our world. Others are talking about Jobs, the man.

But this was the most successful business leader of his era, and one of the greats. Few have achieved so much, so quickly, and publicly. It got me thinking: What are the lessons we can all take away? What do his extraordinary achievements tell the rest of us?

Here are 12 lessons from the life of Jobs:

1. Yes, you can make a difference

Anyone trying to achieve real change — in life, in a company or in any organization — probably feels the urge to give up half a dozen times a day. The naysayers and seat-polishers will do everything to slow you down. No one is suggesting that what Apple achieved was the result of Jobs alone, but his career is proof of just how much one individual can change things.

2. You need a vision

It’s not enough to conduct opinion polls and customer surveys, and rely on consultants’ projections. Those are all based on the conventional wisdom and the world as it is today. Jobs imagined things — most obviously the iPod, and the iTunes services — that didn’t yet exist and for which the market was uncertain. While his competitors were still building the products of yesterday, he was imagining, and building, those of tomorrow.

3. It’s not about you

It’s horrifying how many business decisions are still made on the assumption that “well, we have to do something with XYZ division, so let’s give them this project” or “Buggins has seniority so he’s in charge.” Do you think the customer cares about Buggins or XYZ division? Jobs built Apple into a streamlined operation, focused on the output, nothing else.

4. Focus, focus, focus

Hard to believe, but mediocre managers everywhere like to keep their staff “busy” because they think that’s “productive.” It isn’t. (Ask them what their top priority is, and they’ll name two things. Or four. Or 16.) Apple sure was “busy, busy, busy” when Jobs arrived. And it was going bust. One of the first things he did was axe about 90% of their activities and focus — first on the iMac, then on the iPod.

5. ‘OK’ is not OK

Look at the way Apple’s competitors keep putting out mediocre or unfinished products and thinking they’ll get away with it. Are they for real? The days when you could get by with second best are so over. Jobs was famous for a fanatical perfectionism. It was a core element of Apple’s success.

6. It’s not about the money

Steve Jobs’ life was a thumping rebuttal to all those who are obsessed with cash. The guy had billions: Far more than he could ever spend, even if he had lived to 100. Yet he kept working, and striving to achieve greater things. Money? Bah. Something to think about the next time a CEO demands another $20 million a year as an incentive to show up. [emphasis mine]

7. It ain’t over till it’s over

Fifteen years ago Steve Jobs appeared to be a has-been in Silicon Valley. And Apple was circling the drain: The company was plagued with losses, executive firings, reorganizations, desperate asset sales and research cuts. Apple stock hit a low of $3.23 in 1996, and hardly anyone wanted it even at that price.

8. Give people what they really want

Sound obvious, right? But most companies don’t do it. They simply produce what they’ve always produced, or what’s comfortable, or what Buggins thinks people want. For years the computer industry churned out ugly, clunky beige products with complicated operating systems. They all did it, and they all assumed that’s what people wanted. Turns out it wasn’t at all.

9. Destroy your own products — before someone else does

Jobs made sure that Apple kept innovating, and rendering its own products out of date. Creative destruction came from within! That’s why Apple is a $354 billion company, and, say, Palm has vanished from the Earth, even though a 2004 iPod is just as out of date as a 2004 Treo. How rare is this? Jobs knew full well his $500 iPad threatens to cannibalize sales of $1,000 laptops. But he moved forward nonetheless. Most companies wouldn’t.

10. We are all spin-doctors now

Critics point out that a lot of what Jobs achieved at Apple was put down to hype and hustle. But that was the point. And Jobs was a master at it — the product teasers, the showmanship on stage, even down to the black turtlenecks. Truth be told, we live in a superficial age of infinite media. We are all in the spin business. Deal with it.

11. Most people don’t know what they’re doing

It takes nothing away from Steve Jobs to point out that he couldn’t have done it without his competitors. Microsoft, Palm, Nokia, Dell, HP — the list goes on. They missed opportunities, stayed complacent, failed to innovate and generally mishandled the way their industry changed. It’s normal to assume that the people around us — and in power — know what they are doing. As Jobs proved, often times they don’t.

12. Your time is precious — don’t waste it

Steve Jobs was just 56 when he died — a comparatively young man — and yet during his short spell on Earth he revolutionized the way we live, several times over. What are we doing with our time? It is the resource we waste the most — and it’s the one we cannot buy. Make the most of your short spell on this planet. Make each day and hour count.

Yes, that was very good. Thanks for posting it. Back in the fifties, the father of a school buddy of mine started a multi-million-dollar business by punching out those little green felt dots with the adhesive backing that you stick on the bottom of lamps etc.

I think they’re all made in China these days…

I was already awed, but this was a real surprise:
Steve Jobs’s secret legacy: Dying Apple boss left plans for four years of new products

New, improved iPod, iPad, iPhone and MacBooks have been blueprinted and stored for their debuts.