Q101.com honors a man who thought outside of the proverbial box, who broke rules, and ignored critics.  We find it oddly ironic that the sheer lightening speed with which the world is learning of his passing is due, in large measure, to the devices he helped pioneer, to technologies he helped transform.  Steve Jobs and people like him are in no small part responsible for the fact that Q101 is able to live on without a radio transmitter.  Think Different Indeed.

Here’s what Cnet is reporting, following by some thoughts from our very own tech/gadget Blogga.

Apple co-founder and Chairman Steve Jobs died today. He was 56.

Jobs had been suffering from various health issues following the seven-year anniversary of his surgery for a rare form of pancreatic cancer in August 2004. Apple announced in January that he would be taking an indeterminate medical leave of absence. Jobs then stepped down as chief executive in late August, citing his inability to “meet my duties and expectations” stemming from his illness.

In a statement, Apple said paid tribute to its one-time leader as ” a visionary and creative genius” adding that the world had “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,” the company statement said.

Jobs “died peacefully today surrounded by his family,” the family said in a statement, which went on to thank the “many people who have shared their wishes and prayers during the last year of Steve’s illness” and promise a website for those who wish to offer tributes and memories.

But tributes and memories were already flowing in from political leaders, titans of Silicon Valley industry, and from ordinary Americans.

READ MORE HERE

Source:  http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/10/05/scitech/main20116338.shtml

 

Q101 Tech Blogga Comicbookjockey weighs in on the passing of a titan: 

I remember being in 5^th grade, and sitting in front of a computer with sharp, flat angles-very simple-with the picture of a multi-colored apple on it, playing Oregon Trail, frustrated that my wagon busted a wheel, or my unhelpful family died from Dysentery. Those were my first experiences with an Apple computer. They continued to grow after that. Being a rather “special” child, according to my father, I enjoyed art, games, and especially design. Through high school, and college, I immersed myself  into the slowly emerging artistic programs, and capabilities of Apple’s computers, as did a lot of people around the country.

Steve Jobs was born Feb. 24^th, 1955.  He was raised by his adoptive parents in the city of Cupertino, California, the locale where he decades later started his company.;  Of course, it flourished into the powerhouse of simplistic, functional technology it is today.  Always one that had to have his hands and mind in everything Apple was doing, his business sense, and work ethic were responsible for things like iTunes, iPods, iPhones, iPads, and the line of desktop and laptop computers that are sold today. Yes, it is true:  Apple’s products are more expensive than others, but as an artist, I consider the technology I use an extension of myself, and in itself to reflect my creativity.

The design of Apple’s products is simple:  Silver, white, black. As few external pieces as possible. Its software code gives us a simple interface, but complicated enough to make it neigh impossible to contract a virus (I’ve tried).

Jobs carried around a rep of being a workaholic, and settled for nothing less than complete perfection.  His was a great example of the “never-give-up” attitude that drives people and business to new heights.

In 2004, he let his employees, and the world know about a battle with pancreatic cancer, even going as far as to undergo a “secret” liver transplant in 2009 during a medical leave of absence. He stepped down from the position of Apple’s CEO in August of this year, but going out on what many see as beyond the top. This last summer, the company that he helped build into what it is, had more cash on hand than the United States Treasury, and was more valuable than Exxon Mobil, and lived, for a brief moment, as the world’s most valuable business.

I learned of Steve Jobs’ passing a matter of minutes before I began writing this, and I won’t lie:  I was overcome with emotion for someone that I had never met, but have the utmost respect for.  I admire him both for the words I have heard come out of his mouth, as well as for the things he helped create that I use on a daily basis. I did not think, or plan, or make an outline for this at all, I felt that what I feel right now after hearing this saddening news would give me enough focus to put some paragraphs together about a class act in a turtleneck, with a grasp of technology, and design that I can only hope for in time.

RESPECT.

By Q101 Tech Blogga Comicbookjockey, a guy with too many opinions, and too little time. He’s crass and articulate, and enjoys hot sauce, talking about nerdy stuff, and cleaning up after himself. Too see and hear more: The Twitters, The Website, The Blog, The Email

 

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