Steve Jobs, visionary co-founder of Apple, died Wednesday at age 56. In remembrance, here are some articles of interest, and a few words from Puget Sound’s Chief Technology Officer regarding Steve and his influences in the digital age.
Steve Jobs Must-Reads: Reflections, Tributes, Photos and Webcomics (PBS Newshour)
Apple’s Visionary Redefined Digital Age (The New York Times)
In high-tech tributes, Apple fans mourn Steve Jobs (The Seattle Times)
ARTstor Article, October 6, 2011
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A Tribute from Puget Sounds’ Chief Technology Officer
William E. Morse, Jr. J.D.
Chief Technology Officer
Associate Vice President for Technology Services
University of Puget Sound
Once upon a time, when I was still a student and working for Emory University’s central computing unit, I bought one of Steve Job’s NeXT computers. As you probably know, this is the computer company he founded after leaving Apple. The computer was expensive. Very expensive, but I saved up for it as it was, hands down, the best computer I had ever used. It got everything right.
Impulsively, I wrote Steve Jobs at NeXT to say that. To my surprise, he wrote me back and we had a dialog for a bit. In the end, he offered me a Job at NeXT which I did not accept as I wanted to finish my degree. While I absolutely love what I do today, I sometimes wonder what my life would have been like had I taken that path instead.
Still, many of the lessons of Steve Jobs are with me today in what we do. Put simply, he taught us that it is not about the technology, it is about the people using it. You should not need to be a computer expert to get things going. It should “just work.”
That lesson was driven home for me with the iPhone. It just worked and it was the first smart phone I have ever had that could claim that to be true. Hence, it has become an invaluable, indispensable part of my life. No other phone in its class, past or present (and we have the support tickets to prove it) works so well, so easily or so reliably.
The man was brilliant. Whether you use Apple products or not, there is no denying that he remade all of our lives. So, here is to you, Mr. Steve Jobs. Rest in Peace.
PS: Yes, I still have my NeXT Turbo Color. It is the only computer I will ever keep.