Steve Jobs Remembered
This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.
Steve Jobs made technology fun. The co-founder of Apple died last Wednesday at the age of fifty-six. He had fought for years against cancer. Mourners gathered outside his house in Palo Alto, California, and Apple stores around the world.
Tim Bajarin is president of Creative Strategies, a high-tech research and consulting company.
TIM BAJARIN: «If you actually look at a tech leader, they’re really happy if they have one hit in their life. Steve Jobs has the Apple II, the Mac, the iPod, the iPhone, the iPad and Pixar.”
Steve Jobs was a college dropout. He was adopted by a machinist and his wife, an accountant. They supported his early interest in electronics.
He and his friend Steve Wozniak started Apple Computer — now just called Apple — in nineteen seventy-six. They stayed at the company until nineteen eighty-five. That year, Steve Wozniak returned to college and Steve Jobs left in a dispute with the chief executive.
Mr. Jobs then formed his own company, called NeXT Computer. He rejoined Apple in nineteen ninety-seven after it bought NeXT. He helped remake Apple from a business that was in bad shape then to one of the most valuable companies in the world today.
Steve Wozniak, speaking on CNN, remembered his longtime friend as a «great visionary and leader» and a «marketing genius.»
President Obama said in a statement: «By building one of the planet’s most successful companies from his garage, he exemplified the spirit of American ingenuity. By making computers personal and putting the Internet in our pockets, he made the information revolution not only accessible, but intuitive and fun.»
David Carroll is a professor at Parsons School of Design in New York City. He says Steve Jobs not only revolutionized technology, he also revolutionized American business.
DAVID CARROLL: “The fact that he was able to redesign American commerce top to bottom and across is really stunning. He probably will be considered an industrial giant on the scale of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, so one of the great of all time.”
Steve Jobs stepped down as Apple’s chief executive in August because of his health.
Apple’s new chief, Tim Cook, will also have to deal with the new Kindle Fire tablet computer from Amazon.com. It costs less than half as much as an iPad but also does less.
And that’s the VOA Special English Technology Report, written by June Simms and Avi Arditti. I’m Christopher Cruise.
Источник
Steve Jobs Dies at Age 56: 1955-2011
Unbelievably sad and terrible news to report: legendary Apple leader and tech visionary Steve Jobs has died. The following statement has been issued by the Apple Board of Directors:
We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today.
Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve.
His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts.
Apple has put up a short and touching note on their website as well as the image up top, the note says the following:
Steve Jobs: 1955-2011
Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.
If you would like to share your thoughts, memories, and condolences, please email rememberingsteve@apple.com
The family of Steve Jobs’ has since released the following statement:
Steve died peacefully today surrounded by his family.
In his public life, Steve was known as a visionary; in his private life, he cherished his family. We are thankful to the many people who have shared their wishes and prayers during the last year of Steve’s illness; a website will be provided for those who wish to offer tributes and memories.
We are grateful for the support and kindness of those who share our feelings for Steve. We know many of you will mourn with us, and we ask that you respect our privacy during our time of grief.
Apple CEO Tim Cook sent out the following email to Apple employees:
Team,
I have some very sad news to share with all of you. Steve passed away earlier today.
Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.
We are planning a celebration of Steve’s extraordinary life for Apple employees that will take place soon. If you would like to share your thoughts, memories and condolences in the interim, you can simply email rememberingsteve@apple.com.
No words can adequately express our sadness at Steve’s death or our gratitude for the opportunity to work with him. We will honor his memory by dedicating ourselves to continuing the work he loved so much.
There’s been an outpouring of words, here are a few notable citations from various industry leaders, competitors, and friends of Steve:
I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work.
Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives.
The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.
For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.
I am very, very sad to hear the news about Steve. He was a great man with incredible achievements and amazing brilliance. He always seemed to be able to say in very few words what you actually should have been thinking before you thought it. His focus on the user experience above all else has always been an inspiration to me. He was very kind to reach out to me as I became CEO of Google and spend time offering his advice and knowledge even though he was not at all well. My thoughts and Google’s are with his family and the whole Apple family.
Steve, thank you for being a mentor and a friend. Thanks for showing that what you build can change the world. I will miss you.
Tonight, America lost a genius who will be remembered with Edison and Einstein, and whose ideas will shape the world for generations to come.
Michelle and I are saddened to learn of the passing of Steve Jobs. Steve was among the greatest of American innovators – brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.
By building one of the planet’s most successful companies from his garage, he exemplified the spirit of American ingenuity. By making computers personal and putting the internet in our pockets, he made the information revolution not only accessible, but intuitive and fun. And by turning his talents to storytelling, he has brought joy to millions of children and grownups alike. Steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last. Because he did, he transformed our lives, redefined entire industries, and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history: he changed the way each of us sees the world.
The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him.
We’re all at a loss for words. Thank you Steve for everything, rest in peace.
Источник
Steve Jobs, Apple ‘visionary’, dies aged 56
Steve Jobs, co-founder and former chief executive of US technology giant Apple, has died at the age of 56.
Apple said he had been «the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives» and had made the world «immeasurably better».
Mr Jobs had announced he was suffering from pancreatic cancer in 2004.
Tributes have been made by technology company bosses and world leaders, with US President Barack Obama saying the world had «lost a visionary».
«Steve was among the greatest of American innovators — brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it,» said Mr Obama.
A statement from Mr Jobs’s family said they were with him when he died peacefully on Wednesday.
«In his public life, Steve was known as a visionary; in his private life, he cherished his family,» they said, requesting privacy and thanking those who had «shared their wishes and prayers» during his final year.
Apple said the company had «lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being».
Tim Cook, who was made Apple’s CEO after Mr Jobs stood down in August, said his predecessor had left behind «a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple».
Flags are being flown at half mast outside the Apple headquarters in Cupertino, California, while fans of the company have left tributes outside Apple shops around the world.
«What he’s done for us as a culture, it resonates uniquely in every person,» said Cory Moll, an Apple employee in San Francisco.
«Even if they never use an Apple product, the impact they have had is so far-reaching.»
At the company’s Shanghai shop, customer Jin Yi said Mr Jobs had created gadgets which had «changed people’s perceptions of machines».
Rivals’ tributes
The heads of other leading technology companies have also paid tribute, including Microsoft boss Bill Gates, who said Mr Jobs’s «profound impact» on the world of technology would «be felt for many generations to come».
«For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honour. I will miss Steve immensely.»
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg thanks Mr Jobs for «showing that what you build can change the world» while Sony Corp president and CEO Howard Stringer said: «The digital age has lost its leading light.»
South Korea’s Samsung, which is involved in an ongoing legal battle with Apple over patents, praised Mr Jobs for his «numerous revolutionary changes to the information technology industry».
«His innovative spirit and remarkable accomplishments will forever be remembered by people around the world,» said chief executive officer Choi Gee-Sung.
Mr Jobs built a reputation as a forthright and demanding leader who could take niche technologies — such as the mouse and graphical user interface, using onscreen icons rather than text — and make them popular with the general public.
He introduced the colourful iMac computer, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad to the world. His death came just a day after Apple unveiled its latest iPhone 4S model.
With a market value estimated at $351bn (ВЈ227bn), Apple became the world’s most valuable technology company.
‘Face of Apple’
More than almost any other business leader, Mr Jobs was indistinguishable from his company, which he co-founded in the 1970s.
As the face of Apple, he represented its dedication to high-end technology and fashionable design.
And inside the company he exerted a level of influence unheard of in most businesses.
In 2004, Mr Jobs announced that he was suffering from pancreatic cancer. He had a liver transplant five years later.
In January, he took medical leave, before resigning as CEO in August and handing over his duties to Mr Cook.
In his resignation letter, Mr Jobs said: «I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.»
However, Mr Jobs stayed on as Apple’s chairman.
Despite his high profile, he remained fiercely protective of his private life.
He married his wife Laurene in 1991, and the couple had three children.
Mr Jobs also leaves a daughter from a previous relationship, and as an adult he discovered that he had a biological sister, US novelist Mona Simpson.
Источник
Steve Jobs, Apple co-founder, dies at 56
Admirers of Apple’s co-founder Steve Jobs, who has died aged 56, gather at the Apple campus in Cupertino Reuters
Steve Jobs, billionaire co-founder of Apple and the mastermind behind an empire of products that revolutionised computing, telephony and the music industry, has died in California at the age of 56.
Jobs stepped down in August as chief executive of the company he helped set up in 1976, citing illness. He had been battling an unusual form of pancreatic cancer, and had received a liver transplant in 2009.
Jobs wrote in his letter of resignation: «I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.»
Apple released a statement paying tribute: «Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives … The world is immeasurably better because of Steve.»
Bill Gates, the former chief executive of Microsoft, said in a statement that he was «truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’s death». He added: «The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.
«For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honour. I will miss Steve immensely.»
He is survived by his wife, Laurene, and four children. In a statement his family said Jobs «died peacefully today surrounded by his family … We know many of you will mourn with us, and we ask that you respect our privacy during our time of grief».
Jobs was one of the pioneers of Silicon Valley and helped establish the region’s claim as the global centre of technology. He founded Apple with his childhood friend Steve Wozniak, and the two marketed what was considered the world’s first personal computer, the Apple II.
He was ousted in a bitter boardroom battle in 1985, a move that he later claimed was the best thing that could have happened to him. Jobs went on to buy Pixar, the company behind some of the biggest animated hits in cinema history including Toy Story, Cars and Finding Nemo.
He returned to Apple 11 years later when it was being written off by rivals. What followed was one of the most remarkable comebacks in business history.
Apple was briefly the most valuable company in the world earlier this year, knocking oil giant Exxon Mobil off the top spot. The company produces $65.2bn a year in revenue compared with $7.1bn in its business year ending September 1997.
Starting with his brightly coloured iMacs, Jobs went on to launch hit after hit transformed personal computing.
Then came the success of the iPod, which revolutionised the music industry, leading to a collapse in CD sales and making Jobs one of the most powerful voices in an industry he loved.
His firm was named in homage to the Beatles’ record label, Apple. But the borrowing was permitted on the basis that the computing firm would stay out of music. After the success of the iPod the two Apples became engaged in a lengthy legal battle which finally ended last year when the Beatles allowed iTunes to start selling their back catalogue.
Jobs’s remarkable capacity to spot what people wanted next came without the aid of market research or focus groups.
«For something this complicated, it’s really hard to design products by focus groups,» he once said. «A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.»
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.
Jobs leaves an estimated $8.3bn, but he often dismissed others’ interest in his wealth. «Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful … that’s what matters to me.»
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