RIP, Steve Jobs

by folkbum

You all know I am an Apple user--not quite the fanboy, but loyal to a brand that has never disappointed me and often impressed me with its ingenuity and customer service.

So this is a bit depressing, and, speaking as one who remembers The Lost Years when Jobs was out of the company and the people left behind ran Apple like any other PC maker, a bit concerning. But I do like to think that at this point Apple has established itself more clearly, with not just fanboys anymore but flat-out ubiquity and product lines that are strong and plainly defined. Jobs's ethos is more thoroughly integrated into what Apple does anymore, and that I hope speaks well for the future of the company.

Thanks, Steve.

Jobs

By 3rd Way

A good rant is one of the most satisfying reads you can find. I wanted to post this support for the culture that helped to create one of the best businesses in the history of business after I read it. After learning that Jobs is again leaving Apple I had to post it. I hope he will again return to lead the company he created.

He's a non-Christian, arugula-eating, drug-using follower of unabashedly old-fashioned liberal teachings from the hippies and folk music stars of the 60s. And he believes in science, in things that science can demonstrate like climate change and Pi having a value more specific than "3", and in extending responsible benefits to his employees while encouraging his company to lead by being environmentally responsible.

Every single person who'd attack Steve Jobs on any of these grounds is, demonstrably, worse at business than Jobs. They're unqualified to assert that liberal values are bad for business, when the demonstrable, factual, obvious evidence contradicts those assertions.

It's a choice whether you, or anyone else, wants to accept the falsehood that liberal values are somehow in contradiction with business success at a global scale. Indeed, it would seem that many who claim to be pro-business are trying to "save" us from exactly the inclusive, creative, tolerant values that have made America's most successful company possible. I side with the makers, the creators, and the inventors, and it's about time that the pack of clamoring would-be politicians be put on the defensive for attacking the values of those of us on this side.


This really smart dude has some smart things to say about Apple's recent performance.

Apple Inc, already among the largest companies in the world in terms of market cap, announced yesterday that the company's "revenue [is] up 82 percent and profits [are] up 125 percent" over the same quarter last year. That level of growth in such a big company...that's just astounding. And much of the revenue and profit are from products that didn't exist even five years ago...the iPad alone was a ~$5 billion business in Q3 (for comparison, Google had $9 billion in total revenues in Q2). If that's not unprecedented, it's damn close.

We hope you get better Steve.

iPad blogging

by folkbum

Well, I finally have my hands on one, and I have to say that the thing is absolutely beautiful. (And I have to say that by "have my hands on one," I mean that I'm standing here at the Apple store playing with one.)

The interface Is clean and smooth, and the web looks absolutely gorgeous. The books look great too. This keyboard is a whole lot better to use than my iPod touch's, though not a reasonable substitute for a laptop keyboard.

I think I can live without one, at least as long as it remains primarily a media consumption tool, as opposed to a media creation tool. My MacBook wins this round.

We Still Like Apple

by folkbum

A couple of people have wondered where the post Keith wrote last week about bad customer service from non-Apple vendors went. There's no conspiracy--just a miscommunication between me and Keith.

We like Apple--well, at least I do--and I've had plenty of good customer service experiences with Apple over the years. That includes everything from getting a brand-new iBook with little hassle and getting a MacBook Pro battery long after the battery warranty expired. Just because their customer service people do their jobs well.

We now return you to our regularly scheduled conservative-bashing.