http://techcrunch.com/2011/01/17/ste...ch+(TechCrunch)

I honestly don't think he'll be coming back this time. And if you read this sentence he sent to the Apple team, neither does he:

"I love Apple so much and hope to be back as soon as I can. In the meantime, my family and I would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy."

Despite the fact that I hate Apple as a company and Jobs as a CEO, I don't wish him ill. I hope he makes a recovery, despite the odds. I just hope he finally leaves the company for good - perhaps a new CEO will reverse some of the "evil" decisions he's been making lately. Although that's probably wishful thinking.

Peter

I agree.

I abhor Apple's we decide what's best for you policy, but Jobs is part of the old guard who started as teenagers soldering computers in their garages back in the mid-'70s and it would be a shame to lose him from the computing world altogether.

Wozniak has no corporate dealings anymore, Gates his off doing his charity work... and Paul Allen apparently does little else than try to sue people these days.

Jobs is the only one who's still trying to change the way we do everything.

I wonder if it's got anything to do with the fact that I lost my iPhone this morning.

watch the apple share price take a dive

How does one hate a company, provided it's not off spilling oil into the ocean or hiring hit squads to supress union activity, etc. but simply just making and selling consumer products? Hate Jobs as CEO? WTF before Jobs came back Apple was on the brink of bankruptcy, now their market cap is larger than microsoft.

apple are no worse then any other company, just look at the way sony go after people for cracking there encryption!!

yes the iphones etc are locked down, and have features 'missing' but its easy to unlock them and add the features you want, and lets face it, apple products just work, no messing around (I'm not an apple fan btw, tried to share the love with a mac mini but just couldn't get along with it so sold it)

and you have to admit it, Jobs is pretty special having totally turned apple around

That's true. Sony removed the features I paid for when buying a PSP.
Shortly after they removed the SKYPE and MESSAGING thing! (I bought the device mainly for those).

So like you said my reaction was to unlock it and add the features I wanted. Since them SONY never got a penny from me.

But APPLE also sucks
Most corporates basically.

Never mind Apple having good or crappy products, they make phones with faulty antenna's, charge a small fortune for them and still sell loads of them.
They make a pad that can't handle usb,flash etc,charge a bundle for it and again, they fly over the counter like there is no tomorrow.

Just like Sony, you pay for the name,but it will do the same like any other b brand sittin beside it in the store.

Apple and Steve Jobs have the best marketing people ever,they could sell toothpaste to person with no teeth if they had to..
So Jobs or no Jobs, marketing will keep on pushing and selling..unless one of their salespeople encounter me..last Apple sales person who tried to "push" an apple product on me ran away swearing words i've never heard of in my life

Joey 1, Apple 0

Btw its not only Apple,many other companies have the same strategy, its all about your marketing..never mind the product.

__________________
Buying or selling a boat worldwide ? check out here

I also prefer 'freedom'. ( linux).
But i have to thank Jobs: since my father passed from a pc to a macbook. i have spent less week ends fixing his computer.

Because he can't use linux,thus not switching the pc on ? (friendly fire)

I had the same, dad wanted to buy a new laptop so one of his workbuddies gave him a loan of his macbook.

Dad looked at it, wondered where everything went ( windows "user) , pressed a few buttons and said he couldn't be bothered using it as he didn't understand it, hence the thing just sat there for a few days and he returned it to its owner without buying the macbook.

Linux or Windows, its all the same, it just runs the pc.
But to pay extra money because it has a piece of fruit on it, or a big name like Dell or Sony..naah.. at the end of the day they all do the same.

__________________
Buying or selling a boat worldwide ? check out here

I think this is slightly missing the point, though. The Apple philosophy is that they don't just want to sell you computer hardware, or a phone with Google's operating system on it, they sell an integrated product, and they want that product to work reliably and intuitively. Once you start adding extra functionality into it, you introduce complexity that their target market (people like my mum) are as likely to get put off by being confused as they are to find it a benefit. For example, the reason for not supporting flash, ie that it is unreliable and resource-hungry, fits with this philosophy. If your browser keeps crashing and your battery life drops in half because of flash, you are likely to blame your crappy phone, harming the Apple image, when the problem is really with 3rd party software. In that regard, the Apple product generally is better than Brand X (eg a generic beige box with windows on it, or a generic phone with Android, packed with un-deletable network provided junk software).

While I agree that they take their marketing and brand image seriously, I think an important feature to bear in mind with Apple is they have a very high customer retention, ie people who have owned and used an Apple computer or phone will chose to buy Apple next time rather than Brand X. That suggests to me that the product is actually a good one, rather than just marketing hype.

I think Steve Jobs is personally responsible for a lot of this philosophy. Basically he thinks that he (and his company) know better than their average customer (people like my mum) what will make a good computer or a good phone. Having had a number of windows boxes and done the Linux thing over the years, having given Apple a go too, I would tend to agree with that.

That said, I find the way the Apple retail stores are set up quite irritating, with people coming up to me trying to sell me stuff I don't want, but when I do actually want to buy something, I can never find anyone to take my money.

Does that mean no iPhone 5 soon?

Jobs doesn't make the actual products himself

Hi,

I have so say I agree with Dawiz, I wish Steve Jobs good health and speedy recovery but at the same time hope that an eventual change in CEO will improve Apple. They are a marketing driven company which seems to often make decisions that are anti consumer and done purely to ensure they can continue to sell over priced products. When you buy an Apple product you always have to balance out what you are willing to sacrifice. Each new "innovation" that comes seems to give them more and more control over what you can install and use.

It is a company that polarises people's opinion and being a personality led company with Steve Job's trademarked reality distortion field when he finally steps down it will leave a big hole but also leaves a big chance for improvement. It is not an easy company to like. Only Apple would have the arrogance to have as part of their shops a "Genius Bar", with people having tee shirts advertisting the fact. Sad reality is that you are more likely to find some one in Interdiscount who has a clue about computing.

I have used many of their products but I always left wanting for something better and so it tends to be a transient relationship. There is always that feeling that other peopel do it better.

Have fun
Martin

Here we go again.
Major corporation w/ high profile CEO taking a leave of absence because of health issues (wouldn't want to be in his shoes, honestly).
This time around at least he chose to announce the fact and not try to hide it like last time around....

So - AppleFans...what do you think?
Can Apple be Apple sans Steve Jobs, or has his persona imbued the company to such extent that it will represent him, his ideas and values even if/when he's gone?

Personally I'd think the second answer on the basis that all those who chose to work in such a high pressure environment, and were willing to do whatever it takes to fit within the predominant corporate culture, will also keep the ball rolling in the same direction - at least initially.

I'm curious to hear your opinion and to see how this pans out (touch wood for SJ's health).

Paul

__________________

Gotta love how people get so over emotional about anything Apple!
Vote with your wallet, don't like, don't buy. Same as every other product in the world.

Exactly. Like when the latest Mac book Air came out, people were saying it should have had a faster/the latest processor spec.
It's a computer designed to be light, portable and look pretty on a meeting table. If you want to render HD video or anything else that actually requires a powerful computer buy the appropriate machine. The Air is well equipped to show powerpoints and browse Facebook, which is what most of them will ever be doing. And I'm completely speculating here, but the older processor could be tried tested and proven reliable, unlike a new one.
It's like looking at the Toyota Prius and saying they could have put a V8 in it...

I recommend you buy this book, then perhaps you'll have a better idea about what you are talking about

I used to dislike Steve Jobs and everything he and Apple stood for. But when I was back home over the festive period and saw my 75 year old grandmother playing on my Dad's iPad I really changed my opinion of Apple as a whole

No. That would be many thousands of Chinese workers leading so desperate lives that the operator of the plant (Foxconn) has to set up safety nets to stop them jumping off the factory buildings to kill themselves... but the products are shiny.

You may want to add that Foxconn also make Sony, Nintendo, Dell and Nokia products.
In fact almost every consumer electronic device stamped 'made in China' will have been made under similar working conditions with similar wages.

And with 800,000 people working at Foxconn (it's a big place), the suicide rate is around the national average.