For those of us interested in the use of information technology to create a better world, last week’s passing of Steve Jobs was indeed a sad occasion.
In 1981 I began my use of IT with an Apple 2 E and a programme that I got a friend to write. Some years later I bought an Apple Macintosh and today I have an iPhone 3 (soon to be upgraded to an iPhone 5 and an iPad 2). Yet until now I haven’t really realised that I am an Apple fan. Looking at the evidence, it would be very hard to deny that I am!
Steve Jobs liked to break the rules and to do things differently. When everyone told him they wanted PCs and that the device should be independent of the software, he tempted them with something that was too good to pass up. When RIM (the makers of the Blackberry) dominated the lucrative smart-phone market, Apple quietly stole it away from them. When no-one else could make a tablet computer useful enough to do the job, Apple brought out the iPad and the market changed overnight. Apple’s range of laptops is viewed as the best in the business and so it is no wonder that Apple has become one of the most valuable companies in the world.
All from a start-up launched by two long-haired kids in a Cupertino garage. Thanks very much Steve, we are certainly going to miss you.
You might enjoy this video of Steve Jobs demonstrating the first Apple Mac in 1984. Look just how far technology has come!