Steve Jobs Has Died

[phantasmalWordsmith]

One can only hope he died peacefully and painlessly...And that he's already planning on marketing the Ipod Infinity to the angels

 

[Blind Sight]

I'm amazed how upset people are about this. He made some innovations in the fields of computing, then became more widely-known for being the CEO of one of a company that prides itself on selling overpriced shit to morons. I really don't believe this bullshit about him being some great visionary innovater. A very intelligent and driven man, sure, and we could do a lot worse than to have a few more Steve Jobses walking around today, but seriously, I'm amazed at the pedestal people have put him on. I mean, people seem even more sad about this than about the multitudes of other tragic deaths that occur every year. I'm not gonna be "that guy2 who prides himself on repeatedly insulting others by assuming the worst about their intelligence and pointing out all the other tragedies that occur day-by-day, I know you all know about that stuff and feel strongly about it too, as any decent human being should. But seriously, all this worldwide sadness for a man who helped the field of Personal Computing develop before then making obscene amounts of money selling gadgets for way more than they were worth via an incredibly unethical company that constantly pushed for more restrictive copyright laws?

The death of the man himself is a tragic, tragic event and I wish only the best for his loved ones as they try to get through this difficult time without someone who they held dear. I just want to make that absolutely clear. But I don't think we should be extolling him as some kind of wonderful genius. Some of this shit happened on his watch:

http://www.cracked.com/article_18377_5-reasons-you-should-be-scared-apple.html

And let's not forget the oft-repeated arguments against the sort of prices they charge for their products, as well as some of the insane and ridiculous hype surrunding them.

Not saying he's a bad person, but he's certianly not the sort of guy a whole load of strangers should be mourning. I have no doubt that his loved ones deserve sympathy and comfort and that his death is nothing other than tragic. After all, a man lost his life. I'm just trying to bring up these points because I feel they're worth discussing.

Sorry if I offended anyone by bringing this shit up so soon, in a thread about his passing, no less.

This happens though, when someone dies. It's that whole social notion of 'don't speak ill of the dead'. Note how many people say they hate Apple currently, but are saying nothing about Jobs' own questionable acts in the past. I guess if you want everyone to like you for awhile you should just die haha.

Also, for the people who say that Jobs was the co-founder of Pixar, he wasn't, he was just a major investor.

 

[Worr Monger]

Like many people... I'm not a big fan of Apple. I own an iPod touch... that's about it. But I don't deny that a lot of people enjoy their products and that they help evolve technology.

As someone that doesn't care for Apple products... This still upsets me. The world has lost a very influential person. The tech world will be a lesser place without him.

 

[SidingWithTheEnemy]

I loved Apple all my life, but with him returing as CEO in 1997 I began to lose interest because of his policy. I don't think he was a good person. He was a shrewd manager with quite a big ego who was able to make millions probably doing what all CEOs do: most likely exploiting the workforce and selling arguably overpiced goods to the customers.

But still he died to soon and nobody deserves that. He resigned almost two month anyway, so I hope he had some got free time there.

My sincere sympathies for his family and for all those people who hold him dear.

 

[rda_Highlander]

Westboro Baptist Church stated that they're going to picket his buring. Look it up. What the fuck.

 

[KnowYourOnion]

Same here. I despise MacBooks and the iMac but iPods and iPhones are completely different for me. Steve Jobs was the father of modern portable media players and revolutionized portable devices with the miniature-micronisation of electrical components that all iPods and iPhones have in them.

Proof that Job's brilliant marketing techniques work. He isn't anything like you call him. He took what was already long there, polished it, repackaged it and sold it like he made something out of this world. And you know what? Craptons of people fell for it completely, which is a huge accomplishment in it's own right. Vile, and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth, but a big accomplishment nonetheless.

Jobs was an absolutely brilliant marketeer who knew how to play the masses, he made Apple rose from the ashes with that skill. Technological pioneer? Barely, at least not the previous decade or so. He did make the first commercial GUI-interface, that was innovative. That and he made Pixar happen. Thumbs up for that.

And that commercial GUI is what sold the iPod and revolutionised the way people listen to music, the whole mobile music thing was popularised by the iPod and the same thing is happening to tablet PCs now.

Like it or not Apple and Steve Jobs changed the world

 

[anthony87]

Right, I don't care as much as the next dude but I still can't help but get pissed of at all the:

"HURR HE'S DEAD AND I DON'T CARE HURR LOGIC DURR"

Nobody cares that you don't care so just fuck off and let people show their respect however they want.

 

[no oneder]

He's in a better place now and will be deeply missed. He's now watching us from above from the iCloud.

 

[Cowabungaa]

And that commercial GUI is what sold the iPod and revolutionised the way people listen to music, the whole mobile music thing was popularised by the iPod and the same thing is happening to tablet PCs now.

Like it or not Apple and Steve Jobs changed the world

MP3 players where there before the iPod was there, same thing with tablet PC's. Apple's strength was taking technology that was already there, repacking it, put a new design around it and marketing it like it was a revolution.

See, that's what grinds my gears. Jobs is heralded by many as some kind of technological visionair. But he barely is. He was a marketing genius who knew exactly how to reach the masses. He knew exactly what kind of package to put around technology to make it connect with the public and knew exactly what to say to make everyone love it.

That, of course, is a brilliance of it's own. But it just leaves and incredibly dirty taste in my mouth, to know that because of that cleverness Apple can easily put outrageous prices on products that, technically, aren't that much better, or even worse. Just read RAKtheUndead's review of the first iPhone. Yet, Jobs knew exactly how to market his product for people to not care about it. That just rubs me the wrong way.

 

[Monshroud]

I am not an Apple fanboy, for the most part the Apple platform is too locked down for my taste. That being said, I do recognize the fact that what Steve Jobs and Apple has done has changed the way we use computers and utilize technology. He was a pioneer and a visionary and he will be missed.

Rest in Peace Steve Jobs. Thank you for changing the world!

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

|Sorry he died, being that he fought cancer. But his company is a big rip off, selling things no one needs. Iphone4 is the same as all the others and sells them for everything other than that you can make calls and txt on them. Even ipad2 was the same as the 1st but smaller. People are so dumb to fall for it.

 

[Kahohess]

Steve Jobs, introducing the IDeath, twice faster as a normal one.

 

[KnowYourOnion]

And that commercial GUI is what sold the iPod and revolutionised the way people listen to music, the whole mobile music thing was popularised by the iPod and the same thing is happening to tablet PCs now.

Like it or not Apple and Steve Jobs changed the world

MP3 players where there before the iPod was there, same thing with tablet PC's. Apple's strength was taking technology that was already there, repacking it, put a new design around it and marketing it like it was a revolution.

See, that's what grinds my gears. Jobs is heralded by many as some kind of technological visionair. But he barely is. He was a marketing genius who knew exactly how to reach the masses. He knew exactly what kind of package to put around technology to make it connect with the public and knew exactly what to say to make everyone love it.

That, of course, is a brilliance of it's own. But it just leaves and incredibly dirty taste in my mouth, to know that because of that cleverness Apple can easily put outrageous prices on products that, technically, aren't that much better, or even worse. Just read RAKtheUndead's review of the first iPhone. Yet, Jobs knew exactly how to market his product for people to not care about it. That just rubs me the wrong way.

Yeah they were there but there wasn't a massive market for them, I think that Apple's strength was creating a market that was happy to buy the goods. Steve Jobs may not have created the technology but he used the existing technology to create something that was accessible to a wider variety of people.

The user interface with Apple products is second to none which where they really shine through, yes there are other products on the market that can do it better but very few of them are as easy to use as an Apple product. I'm a PC user through and through I like to be able to get into the guts of my computer and fiddle with stuff until it explodes in my face but I also like that nearly everything on a Mac just works without having to hit it with a digital hammer.

But hey this is just my opinion make what you will of it

 

[Sigmar ov The Hammer]

Why...... Why does the majority of people here 'despise' apple products?

I don't get it. Really.

*EDIT*
I didn't know Steve Job's personally, I even know he could be hard to work with (perhaps egotistical), but at the end of the day, he got the job done (no pun intended). He made devices bought, used and loved by people everywhere.

I would rather use a Mac over any windows product, any day. Take you cynicism and shove it where the sun doesn't shine.

As someone who comes from a family of Mac users, I feel I owe He Who Wears The Black Turtle Necks In The Sky, at least a "thanks bro".

 

[smearyllama]

This guy was a bad dude, and anyone who says otherwise is wrong.
He helped make computers what they are today, and the world will be poorer without him.

I can only hope that he gets the remembrance he deserves for his accomplishments in life.

 

[James Crook]

To everyone who says you hate apple products for their incompatibility (walled garden) but respect Steve Jobs, you should note that this entire scheme grew out of Jobs personal ego. He was not a good human being and he helped to shape the trademark and patent trolling that has overwhelmed the technology industry. So I am not sorry he's gone, rather relieved. Trolls are trolls and should not be mourned.

You nailed it!
He came and went like most monarchs: yes, he did good things, yes, he was a visionary, yes, tech wouldn't be what it is today without him.
But, mother of Connery, he abused patents, he abused "compatibility" and bound us to iTunes, he made a freaking walled garden...
But he made Pixar. Now, THAT'S great.

 

[geizr]

I wanted to post this earlier; unfortunately, Comcast decided to have an internet outage before I could finish my thoughts

"A live body and a dead body contain the same number of particles. Structurally, there's no discernible difference. Life and death are unquantifiable abstracts. Why should I be concerned?"

I find this quote interesting because it demonstrates a lack of ability to think for oneself or have any actual insight into reality(there were several "philosophies" in The Watchmen that were just wrong, especially Ozymandias' solution to global war and human conflict--hint: it doesn't actually work).

A living body and a dead body do not necessary contain the same number of particles because a dead body no longer breathes, eats, or drinks. They are also not structurally the same because the chemical processes in a living body are completely different from those in a dead body. Further, the minutia of interactions between the parts of a living body that occur to make it operate and function as a living, thinking, acting entity are completely absent in a dead body.

So, life and death are not so abstracted or unquantifiable. The statement itself sounds cool and deeply philosophical, but, in reality, it is not at all well-founded nor even true. It's just a typical pithy comment made in ignorant, derisive cynicism.

-----

Being more on topic and relevant: those of you making crass, asinine posts about how you don't care need to really just fuck off and get over yourselves. If you don't care, don't post, but let others have their moment to remember someone for whom they had respect. At the very least, quit proving yourselves to just be giant assholes that happen to have the ability to operate a computer.

As for myself, I did not always see eye-to-eye with every design choice made, but, I do have a certain resonance with Steve's basic philosophy about technology. Technology should be useful and usable. It is not the features by themselves that make technology useful and usable but how those features are made to work together. This is the difference in the design compared to everything else, and even those things that came before. Being able to create that holistic design, the cohesive interaction of the parts to create a singular, consistent whole, that has been Steve's genius and contribution to technology.

Say what you want, the fact is, Steve Jobs did have an effect that was felt by many across the world. How many of us could say the same of ourselves?

EDIT: edited to be less self-congratulatory on one particular statement.