The Steve We've Lost: A Quick Look at His Accomplishments

[Rob Williams]

The technology industry has just lost one of its most innovative, influential and successful people; Steve Jobs. Whether you're a fan of Apple and its products or not, it's almost assured that you've been affected by some of the accomplishments Steve has made - some of which we'd like to recap here.

Read through Brett's look at some of Steve Jobs' accomplishments and then discuss it here!

 

[Kougar]

The guy not only did what he loved throughout his life but he achieved the goals he set out to do with Apple. Not many people can say the same.

 

[MacMan]

Steve truly practiced what he preached when it came to Apple's famous logo: "Think Different". He never sought wealth, but got it in the process of truly thinking different.

When Steve was only 13 years old, for example, he phoned one of the founders of HP and told them very boldly something along the lines of:

"Hi, I'm Steve and I'm 13 years old and I'm planning on creating a company that will be HP's biggest competitor and nightmare, but I need some help. If you have any extra equipement that you don't need, could you please send them to me , I need the following.... " He then went on to give one of the founders of HP a laundry list that came out to be worth about $1,300 and quess what? HP not only gave him what he asked for, but something that he didn't ask for..... a summer job! That's how impressed HP was. I can't remember which of HP's two founders it was, but he said something along the line: "This kid is going to grow up to do great things."

After being kicked out of the company that he created, he simply went on to create what many believed was the greatest OS ever, NeXtStep, which went on to become OpenStep, and later became the one and only......OS X! OS X is NeXtStep with newer elements added on, such as the animated desktop, etc., and much older features from Mac Classic such as the finder.

I can't believe we'll never see him do another one of his presentations, and for that I'm really sad! :O(

 

[marfig]

"Hi, I'm Steve and I'm 13 years old and I'm planning on creating a company that will be HP's biggest competitor and nightmare, but I need some help. If you have any extra equipement that you don't need, could you please send them to me , I need the following.... " He then went on to give one of the founders of HP a laundry list that came out to be worth about $1,300 and quess what? HP not only gave him what he asked for, but something that he didn't ask for..... a summer job! That's how impressed HP was. I can't remember which of HP's two founders it was, but he said something along the line: "This kid is going to grow up to do great things."

I think that story makes no sense and needs reliable sources.

$1,300 is also, strangely enough, the exact same amount Steve Jobs and Wozniac raised by selling a van and a scientific calculator to start their company (source: The Apple Museum).

 

[MacMan]

I think that story makes no sense and needs reliable sources.

$1,300 is also, strangely enough, the exact same amount Steve Jobs and Wozniac raised by selling a van and a scientific calculator to start their company (source: The Apple Museum).

I'm recalling this all from memory, but give me a few days (boy I'm I busy lately!) and I'll get the source for you. As far as Steve contacting HP's, I believe it was Bill Packard, Jobs actually brought that up when he presented Apple's billion dollar new campus to the Cupertino city council hearings. He tells how he simply called Mr. Packard up (there were no such thing as private numbers in those days) and he requested and ended up with a job. He doesn't mention getting extra parts or his wild boasts, of course..

There are a lot of interesting things about Jobs that I remember, like the time he cheated Steve Wozniak out of $5,000. He sold one of the first original video games to Atari called BreakOut. Steve tricked the Woz into creating the game and told him they would split the money from its sale, some $750, straight down-the-middle. Steve lied about the money, he sold it for much more than that, keeping an extra $5,000 extra for himself!

I've been following Apple and Steve since they started over 30 years ago, and a lot of my memories are a little faded, but I do remember Steve getting the parts, Mr. Packard's prediction of his future greatness like it was yesterday. Now remembering were I read them from so, so long ago.

[http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/plugged-in/steve-jobs-gaming-icon-184353104.html

 

[MacMan]

I think that story makes no sense and needs reliable sources.

$1,300 is also, strangely enough, the exact same amount Steve Jobs and Wozniac raised by selling a van and a scientific calculator to start their company (source: The Apple Museum).

As I said earlier, I don't remember all of the finer details, but here is one link of Steve asking HP for spare parts, I believe one of the was an oscilloscope or something.? I'll try and get a more detail link later, if I ever remember, but here is a quick link even though its breif:

"When Steve arrived in Homestead High School, he enrolled in a popular electronics class. McCollum later recalled of one time when his pupil Steve called up Bill Hewlett himself, co-founder of HP, to get spare parts for his homework, and even a summer job at HP’s factory. Steve’s entrepreneurial skills showed up early in his life indeed."

http://allaboutstevejobs.com/bio/long/01.html

 

[marfig]

That makes a bit more sense, won't you agree? And it's a far cry from the fairy tale story above.

Don't mind me. I prefer fidelity to fantasy. And it's a good way to help stop the spreading of false rumors. I'd rather prefer we honor those we have some manner of respect for, by being faithful to who they were in life.

 

[MacMan]

That makes a bit more sense, won't you agree? And it's a far cry from the fairy tale story above.

Don't mind me. I prefer fidelity to fantasy. And it's a good way to help stop the spreading of false rumors. I'd rather prefer we honor those we have some manner of respect for, by being faithful to who they were in life.

It's not a fairy tale, Steve told Mr. Packard he was going to start a company that would give HP a hard time, I just don't remember the exact place I read it; it was years and years ago. Just because you never read it, doesn't mean it didn't happen, ok?

 

[marfig]

>> Just because you never read it, doesn't mean it didn't happen, ok?

Ok.

 

[MacMan]

>> Just because you never read it, doesn't mean it didn't happen, ok?

Ok.

By the way, you may be correct. Indeed, I've read it, but that doesn't mean it's true... I could have read a false story, but somehow it just stuck in my brain..... we old people are like that, I guess! :O)

 

[Kougar]

That initial quote had just a little silly after-effect editing from somewhere, as that wasn't quite how it started. In fact Jobs said HP was his idol..

Steve Jobs recounting that tale, in his own words: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtuz5OmOh_M Text version here

After watching his presentation... it sounds like something only Steve Jobs could sell. I'd have liked to see the looks on the council's faces when he mentioned 12,000 people... and especially generating their own power on-site. As is typical with Apple's designs, that's one sweet sounding campus.