In remembrance Friday, 07 October 2011 05:22

The towering pioneer of an ubiquitous trademark of an apple with a bite taken out of it, is no more. The passing of Steve Jobs left people around the world in gasp as billions remembered how much he had done to transform the worlds of computing, music and mobile phones, changing the way people communicate and access information and entertainment. Jobs reinvented the technology world four or five times, first with the Apple II, a beautiful personal computer in the 1970s; then in the 1980s with the Macintosh, driven by a mouse and presenting a clean screen that made computing inviting; the ubiquitous iPod debuted in 2001, the iPhone in 2007 and in 2010 the iPad, which a year after it was introduced outsold the Mac.

Jobs created Apple twice — once when he founded it and the second time after a return credited with saving the company. His pearls of wisdom changed many a life. In an address to graduating students embarking on life’s way in 2005, he said: “You’ve got to find what you love. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” Another Jobsian gem: “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking.” Jobs’s remarkable capacity to spot what people wanted next came without the aid of market research or focus groups.

Jobs founded Apple with his childhood friend Steve Wozniak, and the two marketed what was considered the world’s first personal computer, the Apple II. In terms of profits, Apple — one of the pillars of Silicon Valley — is eighth in the world, at $14bn. Jobs guided Apple from the brink of financial ruin to a lofty place among the world’s most valuable companies. With its iTunes store, Apple has become one of the world’s biggest music sellers, while its App Store has created a new sector in the Internet economy. Jobs initially hid his illness but his startling weight loss started to unnerve his investors. He took a six-month medical leave of absence in 2009, during which he received a liver transplant, and another medical leave of absence in mid-January before stepping down as chief executive in August.

But Apple still faces challenges in the absence of the man who was its chief product designer, marketing guru and smart salesman. Phones running Google’s Android software are gaining share in the smartphone market, and there are questions over what the next big thing is in Apple’s product line. His passing will raise doubts over whether the Cupertino, California-based company can continue to dominate the hugely competitive technology sector. Whenever Apple needs to introduce entirely new products, Jobs’s vision may be missed People echoed his advice to stay hungry, dare being foolish, and not waste time living someone else’s life. “Death is the destination we all share. 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.” A great visionary has passed away but his legacy will live on in billions of hearts for years to come.