Monthly Archives: October 2011

Some Thoughts on Steve Jobs

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He meant a lot to me, too.

“I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.”
- Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars, 1977

Last night, I stopped by the Apple Store at the Biltmore Fashion Park. That’s an outdoor mall walking distance from our Phoenix condo. I needed a glare reduction screen for my iPad, which I’ll be using an an electronic flight bag on my helicopter flight from Washington to Arizona this weekend.

As I expected, the Apple logo above the door was dark. But what I didn’t expect was the small and rather sad collection of wilted flowers and cold candles on the pavement outside the store, just to the right of the door. A man in a wheelchair sat there, with a middle-aged woman nearby. They stared intensely at the shrine.

It reminded me of the cult-like members of some of the Apple User Groups I’d presented to in the past.

I thought it was weird — I’m really not a shrine person — and said so on a Facebook post.

Someone commented and asked me why I thought it was weird. And that forced me to finally come to grips with my feelings about the death of Steve Jobs.

Like so many other people, Steve Jobs meant a lot to me.

Steve Jobs was a genius. While he didn’t invent concepts like the MP3 player, smart phone, or tablet computer, he guided Apple to create new and innovative entries into these markets that redefined what each of these things were. The iPod and iTunes store changed the way we listen to and buy music — it shook up an entire industry that had previously been completely unrelated to computers. The iPhone and its App Store took smartphones to the next level, making them far more user friendly and useful than ever before. The iPad brought the iPhone’s now-familiar and wildly successful interface and apps to a larger, more useful device, bringing with it the dawn of the “post PC” era. These products literally changed the world.

Steve Jobs was a perfectionist. He put his high standards before social acceptance — in other words, he’d rather have “insanely great” products than be well-liked. I can really identify with this. While I can’t claim to be anywhere near as smart or picky as Steve was, I also try hard to put my standards first and, I can assure you, that has often had a serious negative impact on personal relationships. But Steve really didn’t seem to care. It was the product first, the company first. If it had the Apple name or logo on it, it had to be up to his standards, period. How can I not respect that?

Steve Jobs was also the embodiment of something I’ve been saying for a long time: you don’t need a college degree to do great things. What you need is a good brain, a great work ethic, the ability to work smart and stay focused, and the drive to succeed. He proved, again and again, that you can get ahead in life by working hard and smart. His flame burned brightly for his entire life, always thinking about the next project, even as he finished the one before it. He never rested; he was driven to succeed.

Is it any wonder that Steve Jobs was one of my personal heroes?

The life story of Steve Jobs is an example of what made America great so many years ago. It’s also a lesson for what could make it great again — if we’d all get off our asses and get to work, using Steve as a role model. Sadly, I don’t think that will happen. Yes, there’s been a disturbance in The Force, but once it dissipates, America will go back to sleep.

Everyone is writing about Steve Jobs these days. I’m probably one of the last to do so. It took me a while to think about what I wanted to say, what I needed to say. And what I’m saying is likely nothing new.

We all knew what Steve Jobs was — an insightful man driven to perfection. How can anyone not love and respect that?

Interesting Links, October 3, 2011

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Here are links I found interesting on October 3, 2011:

At the Laundomat

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In the quiet time before dawn.

I tried to do my laundry yesterday, but when I arrived at the laundromat, it was filled with people and there was a wait for a washer. The idea of spending a few hours among the kind of people who use laundromats on a Saturday morning with their screaming kids wasn’t very appealing to me — I will be the first to admit I’m a snob — so I left, taking my dirty clothes with me.

I drove around all day yesterday with most of my wardrobe in laundry bags in the back seat area.

At The LaundromatI came back this morning at 6:10. What a difference! Not only is the place completely deserted, but it’s spotlessly clean. Sound was the only problem. As usual, the TVs had been tuned to a Spanish-language channel playing what had to be a soap opera. At 6:10 AM. And, as usual, the volume had been set to full blare. I guess they’ll need the volume later when the place fills up.

I dumped my clothes into three washers: two giant front loaders for whites and darks and a small top loader for my throw rugs. I pumped in the correct change — I save quarters in case the change machines don’t work. I added too much soap, set the temps, and programmed a second rinse. Once everything was spinning, I could relax.

But not before I dealt with the TV. The remote had been attached to the wall in such a way that it couldn’t be moved. The buttons were accessible, but neither the volume or mute buttons did a thing. The channel button worked, though. I tuned the TV to an unsubscribed channel and got immediate relief from the racket. Now the Dish Network logo is floating around the screen.

I left my old electric blanket on the counter with a FREE /GRATIS sign on it. Yes, the electric part is broken — and discarded — but the blanket is still warm. Winter is coming. It might mean the difference between a good night’s sleep and a shivering one for someone.

Then I sat down with my iPad to do email, social networking, etc. And finally, this blog post.

I don’t get much down time anymore — you know, the time when you’re kind of stuck somewhere with limited options for things to do. I think I must have planned it that way. Most of us do, whether we realize it or not. Computers have entered every part of our lives. When I’m working on a book, I’m usually sitting in front of two of them. There’s another laptop that seems to live on my dining table. I’m seldom more than a few feet from my smartphone, which is so much more than my primary communication link to the rest of the world. And I’m not ashamed to admit that I sleep with both my phone and iPad beside me. I can’t imagine reading a paper book or doing a crossword puzzle with a pen before sleep time. And how else could I check the weather and my email before starting my day?

I have become a slave to my computing devices.

For a few moments here before I reached for my iPad, I got a sense of what I was missing. It came to me in the sound of the washers I’d called upon to work for me. In the two flies who found me quickly in this big, otherwise deserted room. In the light to the east, silhouetting the thin clouds on the horizon. The world around me, so often ignored.

For a moment, it inspired me to write this blog post. But as I began to type, it was lost, hidden away by my concentration. It became more important to me to report on the laundromat experience than to actually sit back and experience it.

I’ve shifted my clothes from washers to dryers. I’m hoping 30 minutes is enough. It’s 7 AM and I need to be somewhere with my motorcycle by 8 AM. Rush, rush, rush. Between periods of interacting with computing devices, I always seem to be rushing around. Why?

I’m often critical of the people who don’t seem to do anything with their lives. I say they don’t “get it.” but maybe I’m the one who doesn’t get it. Maybe just sitting and watching life go by is the “right” way to take this journey of existence. Maybe my constant pursuit of new skills and goals is just a futile attempt to avoid the inevitability of the simple reality: none of us really matters in the grand scheme of things.

I hope not.