Students react to death of visionary Steve Jobs
Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an incredible human being, according to the epitaph of Steve Jobs, who died last Wednesday at age 56.
His death has a resounding impact, and many USU students were eager to share thoughts about the man behind Apple Inc.
“I think Steve Jobs did an incredible amount for technology,” said Carey Larson, USU bookstore employee and speech communications major. “Historically, he will definitely rank up there with Edison.”
Logan Brown, an undeclared freshman, said it was Jobs’ life story that inspired him.
According to his biography, Jobs was an extremely intelligent and innovative child, who was placed up for adoption as an infant. Elementary school bored Jobs immensely, and he was a prankster who was often in trouble. However, he tested so well that administrators wanted to skip him ahead to high school.
When Jobs was 21, he sold his Volkswagen to provide capital to start Apple Computers, which was incredibly successful. In 1985, however, he resigned from the company. Later, he purchased an animations studio, which later became Pixar, and went on to produce wildly popular animated films.
Jobs returned to the struggling Apple in the 1990s. He gave himself a salary of $1 per year as CEO, hired a new management team and altered stock options. Apple immediately began to rebound. Around the same time Pixar merged with Walt Disney, making Jobs Disney’s largest shareholder.
Jobs discovered he had a rare but operable form of pancreatic cancer in 2003. He battled cancer for almost a decade, and died October 5, 2011.
Apple and PC users alike have been reflecting on the loss.
“Steve Jobs revolutionized the world. He was an incredible businessman, and was incredible at marketing. He made people want to be cutting edge. He made people demand attractive design,” said Hannah Stokes, a USU senior who does not own a Mac. “Not only that, Mac’s customer service is incredible. Whenever my mom has problems with her Mac, she takes it to the Mac store and is very impressed with how much they help her. They hire educated people.”
Even Jobs’ arch-rival Bill Gates conceded that Apple’s designs are sometimes awe inspiring. In 1984, Gates said, “To create a new standard, it takes something that’s not just a little bit different; it takes something that’s really new and really captures people’s imagination. And the Macintosh — of all the machines I’ve seen — is the only one that meets that standard.”
“It’s funny how much Apple is copied. I was just flipping through a ShopKo ad and saw a bunch of different variations of the iPad,” said Steven Haws, a human resource management major. “I work on PCs, and I think it’s kind of pathetic how Windows 7 is an imitation of MacOSX. The iPhone, too, was the first big smart phone, and now a dozen different companies have just barely tweaked their versions of it, so as to not infringe upon copyright laws. Imitation is the highest form of flattery.”
“Whether you use a PC or a Mac for college, you owe a lot to Steve Jobs,” Brown said. “Most of us college students were born in the ‘80s or ‘90s, after Apple had already busted out onto the scene. Since we were born in the Apple Generation, we take technology for granted, but Apple really did come up with a lot of the ideas that are vital to everything we do today.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, Jobs was not angry about other companies using his inventions. In a 1994 interview, Jobs said, “If you say, ‘Well, how do you feel about Bill Gates getting rich off some of the ideas that we had?’ You know, the goal is not to be the richest man in the cemetery. It’s not my goal anyway. Going to bed at night saying ‘We’ve done something wonderful,’ that’s what matters to me.”
Not everyone loves Macintosh computers. Stokes, though she admires Jobs, said she finds PC’s easier to use, because she grew up with them.
“Macs are awesome. They have no viruses, but they are way too expensive. The only reason I don’t have a Mac is because of money,” said Jake Keyes, a history major.
Other students choose not to use a Mac because they don’t want to learn a new interface, said Eric Willeitner, an aerospace engineering major and PC user.
Macintosh computers, which not everyone uses, are not necessarily as important as Jobs’ legacy — the impact he had by inspiring people to challenge the status quo and think outside the box, Brown said. Jobs was a progressive even though he knew his death was impending.
In 2005, two years after he was diagnosed with cancer, Jobs said, “Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”
– steve.kent@aggiemail.usu.edu