In remembrance

 

This 1997 commercial shortly after his return to Apple,
it seems to speak volumes now.

To the man that was different and taught us all to think different! 

I know his impact will be felt for generations.

Steve Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011)
 

Tonight's blog post is dedicated to a man, a legend, an innovator, dreamer and frankly the greatest salesman since P.T. Barnum, Steve Jobs. We were fortunate to have been here when he was, and were able to witness technological history, without even knowing what it was that so marveled us at the time, yet with baited breath we waited each time for the next creation. None of us knew we needed a device to store all of our music, or a laptop that weighed less than my purse. Still, we bought these items on the word of one man, who said we did and we believed him.

Most from my generation have a special affinity for this man, simply because of one word; Apple. In the early 1980's personal computers were still thought to be something out of a Sci-fi novel or Star Trek episode.  Computers in the home? You might as well have been speaking Mandarin, it was preposterous. Who in their right mind would first; learn to use this thing and second, make use of it. The iconic man we all remember tonight, Steve Jobs did. It was as if he had stepped into our future, saw what we would be using and returned back only to build each item. When I was in high school, we had computers and a computer room of sorts, each one was an Apple. This was great if you were one of the lucky ones that got to take the class, but bad too, leaving you frustrated when we had to come home and work with a Commodore 64.

These events began the quest of a new generation of discovers, inventors and dreamers to be unleashed in the last millennium. We were going to crash our way through barriers, and jump light speeds ahead into the new century.  Suddenly, people were building computers, gaming machines, designing programs all because one man the had fore-thought and the fortitude to push the idea of a personal computer in every home. He gave his competition a run, and in my opinion helped force the ingenuity that was shared by another, almost like him, Bill Gates.

Over time, Steve Jobs left Apple and went into another arena, animations. Like the computing industry, children's animated movies would never be the same again. While at Pixar Studios, we all met a group of toys and each one of us were mesmerized once again to the brilliance possessed by Steve Jobs.

Upon his return to Apple, the company he founded, Steve Jobs took the company to new levels. Introducing product like the Mac Book Air, the iPod, iPhone, and more recently iPad (now on its second generation). The presentations were heart stoppers and Steve Jobs was a rock star. He had built a passionate following, where Apple and Steve Jobs were the new deities in the Church of Technology. His followers taking in each word like gospel, and devotees standing on lines than ran for blocks to get the first generation of whatever he had to offer.  

Tonight, the world got a little colder and dimmer, now that his light is out. Crazy as it sounds, we thought that if anyone could beat this cancer, surely Steve Jobs can. Sadly, it was not to be, he passed away and I heard the quiet whimper from the heart of millions upon hearing the news. Although he is no longer with us in the physical realm, he will live forever. Steve Jobs has done more than left an indelible mark on the world with his inventions and the advancements that he gave us, but his legacy is that he told us to dream! Dream big and dream until they all come true. So while I listen to music from my iPod Touch, and type my blog on my MacBook Pro, while listening to the news about his passing on my iPad, I tip my hat to you Steve Jobs and say "Thank you" for all the gifts you shared with us. To his family, friends, and colleagues, sorry for your loss and may you find comfort in knowing the effect he had on the world.

  

Tonight I will leave quotes from the man himself, Steve Jobs; 

• “The most compelling reason for most people to buy a computer for the home will be to link it to a nationwide communications network. We’re just in the beginning stages of what will be a truly remarkable breakthrough for most people––as remarkable as the telephone.” (1985)
• “When you’re young, you look at television and think, There’s a conspiracy. The networks have conspired to dumb us down. But when you get a little older, you realize that’s not true. The networks are in business to give people exactly what they want. That’s a far more depressing thought. Conspiracy is optimistic! You can shoot the bastards! We can have a revolution! But the networks are really in business to give people what they want. It’s the truth.”  (1996)
• "No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true."(2005)
• "Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice."(2005)
• "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma,.. which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice." (2005)  

Computer problems and revelation!

It is amazing how life advances forward and things you once thought you would NEVER be dependent on become your life's blood. I am sorry you have been missing me of late, this is not due to the crash of my beautiful MacBook Pro! No the crash was that of my 17 year old daughter's small IBM clone problematic laptop! I know, I know; other Mac users are saying  "BOOO!", her using a PC versus a Mac was not my decision but one made by her father a die-hard Windows user. The one of the many incompatibilities between my ex-husband and myself. Since she is in her senior year and taking an all AP course load, I had to be sympathetic when she hi-jacked my laptop. Not happy, but understanding. This dilemma and sudden seizure of my laptop prevented me from posting to my blog. Since I am a mom who finds the time to write only if the  rest of the family is preoccupied; if your laptop is away, blogging is too.

Which got me to thinking, recently there was an article regarding the technology and things how children born today, will never use as part of their everyday or even know about outside of a museum. When I was my daughter's age, computers existed in few homes and in one classroom, the concept of owning a computer or more than one, was alien to most of us then. This article made me realize that I have been fortunate in having bear witness to many devices that have made life easier; although perhaps a little less social on a personal level. This wave of new technology has brought new language to the Webster dictionary, that years ago my English teacher Mrs. Lorraine Brooks would have been red lettering my paper for. (On a side-note; Thank you my dear Mrs Brooks for making me have a greater appreciation for sentence structure and clearly conveying a scene, thought, or emotion to my readers).

When I was a kid, the birth of the modern arcades existed; with games like Centipede, Pac-Man, Asteroids and Space Invaders; and every kid had a stash of quarters in their pockets. Evolving to home systems from Atari to today's XBox 360, PS3. I saw television go from rabbit ear antennas to cable offering a few extra channels. Today we have satellites and we all said goodbye to analog. Televisions themselves transformed from monstrous tubes to flat panels. If you have an iPad you can use this as your portable television, as long as you have wi-fi.

My youngest child will never know what a phonograph is, cassette tapes or perhaps even CDs. Meanwhile, I can recall 78's to 33's. If you don't know what I am talking about, go ask your parents. I also have seen the ever changing guard of the telephone.  Landlines were the only option and everyone had that one phone with the ever-so-long cord that would twist endlessly as you walked around your house, seeking privacy for your phone call. Today homes are beginning to do away with landlines, opting for wireless phones which have undergone their own progression into the future. Personally, I am waiting for a cell phone that comes in pill form. Used to be cell phones came with its own suitcase, now its down to one that fits in your pocket. Today, you can use you iPhone to make calls, be your map and surf the net to buy tickets for a movie after watching the trailer online. WOW! Times have most definitely changed.

My little one will also never know of a VCR; which was every working woman or man's and college student's salvation to record endless episodes of soap operas and miscellaneous shows. Gone also is the day of the soap opera, only to be replaced with what I lovingly refer to as filler television, aka reality series. She also will not know of walkmans, pagers, floppy disks and typewriters, most of which was a large part of my young adulthood.

In my lifetime, I can say that as we evolved and technology grew, we got to see some pretty remarkable things. Still it is the smile, my now almost four year old, gets when she sees empty laundry baskets and constructs a "car" and I realize that simplicity is best for some of us. Perhaps to keep the kid alive in all of us we need to hold on to some of the past. So pardon me as I go and create a world made from empty tissue boxes and toilet paper rolls. Don't worry though, I will be listening to my music over my iPod touch.

Today's quote and really it is something to think about;“As technology advances, it reverses the characteristics of every situation again and again. The age of automation is going to be the age of "do it yourself".” Marshall McLuhan