6 Oct, 2011
Yesterday, as I was driving home, listening to podcasts as I normally do, my wife called me with the news that Steve Jobs had passed away. I was not knocked back in complete shock, as most were aware that he had been dealing with Pancreatic cancer for several years. But as I ended the call, I was immediately flooded with images of 1984.
See, in 1984, my parents were trying to find a way to kill my rather deviant nature as a young 5th grader. I was a bit rough around the edges and was one of those kids that got into a lot of trouble, fights and more. Not wanting to send me to a traditional camp, they decided to send me to a six week computer class at the local high school. I thought it might be kind of cool, remembering all the stuff that Matthew Broaderick did in War Games, so I jumped at the chance to check out these things called computers. My knowledge was extremely limited about the devices, but I figured what the hell.
What greeted me at that computer camp was something that changed my life forever – the warm green monochrome glow of an Apple II+. The Apple II+ was like a little box of magic, where I was able to create wonderous creations. I learned how to use Apple Basic and draw a little house with rudimentary commands that I can’t remember at this point in my life. But something about this Apple II+ clicked a switch inside of me, something that ended up shaping my future and computers. Over the years, I strayed from that Apple brand, even though I wanted to own an Apple IIc and even an original Mac at one point. But the Apple brand grew into a small memory in my consciousness, as the PC ended up ruling my world, and eventually becoming my profession.
But I look back at those fateful weeks in 1984 and realized that my whole existence with computers came down to something that Steve Jobs created. Sure he had help from the other Steve, but it was the vision that he set in place for Apple that transformed the company. Sure Apple lost its way at some point, and there was even a short period in the late 1990′s where most thought that Apple would become a footnote in history.
But Steve Jobs, like the long told story of the prodigal son, returned to the company where he had made his mark and used that creative marketing eye to create products that people would not just want out of ease of use, but with an eye of creativity and style that made them an almost necessary fashion accessory. Even I had to admit that I wanted an iPhone at one point. I tried to convince myself that my BlackBerry Storm and original Motorola Droid were as good, but they were not. And while I love my Windows Phone 7, I have still held on to my iPhone 4, because it just has so many creative uses.
So Steve Jobs, you will be missed. Your eye for creating products that were stylish and yes super functional will never be replicated. You found success in whatever field you moved forward in, whether it was with Pixar, NeXT Computing and even in the failures like the Apple Newton and the stupid Cube looking Mac. While never a feverish supporter like your long time fans, I owe you a world of thanks for changing my life during one fateful summer in 1984. You will be missed by all.
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