I just finished watching this hour-long PBS documentary on Steve Jobs; highly recommended. It wasn't a pure fanboi love-fest, they interviewed quite a few folks who couldn't stand him, and showed his vicious side. I didn't realize he had so much to do with modern computer fonts, on all platforms, due to just sitting in on a calligraphy class in college; nor did I realize he travelled to India to study Buhddism (at age 20!).
Two interesting stories: he stole the mouse idea from Zerox, and told his engineers to design one that a) cost less than $15, b) lasted at least two years, and c) had to work on any surface, from Formica to a Levi'd pants leg. The Lead Engineer talked about going to Walgreens and returning with several roll-on deodorant bottles, and a butter dish; that's how the first mouse was designed. A later requirement was going to just one mouse button (part of Steve's zen influence from India) which is one design feature I never agreed with (my last Apple mouse does have several buttons-which-aren't-buttons now, and trackpads make the whole point moot anyway).
One of the first public appearances of the original Macintosh was as a present for Sean Lennon, presented to him by Steve in Yoko Ono's NY apartment. Steve showed Sean how to use MacPaint, in about twenty seconds, and a goofy-looking guy in the background was completely transfixed: Andy Warhol. Steve had to show him how to work the mouse too. Cool stuff!
One thing that really struck me about Steve's life is his response to Failure; he doesn't dwell on it and always jumped back in with renewed vigor. That's something I need to learn; losing my Chief Engineer job two years ago just about killed me, and I need to get out of that mindset.
Anyway, great program. Recommended even for the haters!
Two interesting stories: he stole the mouse idea from Zerox, and told his engineers to design one that a) cost less than $15, b) lasted at least two years, and c) had to work on any surface, from Formica to a Levi'd pants leg. The Lead Engineer talked about going to Walgreens and returning with several roll-on deodorant bottles, and a butter dish; that's how the first mouse was designed. A later requirement was going to just one mouse button (part of Steve's zen influence from India) which is one design feature I never agreed with (my last Apple mouse does have several buttons-which-aren't-buttons now, and trackpads make the whole point moot anyway).
One of the first public appearances of the original Macintosh was as a present for Sean Lennon, presented to him by Steve in Yoko Ono's NY apartment. Steve showed Sean how to use MacPaint, in about twenty seconds, and a goofy-looking guy in the background was completely transfixed: Andy Warhol. Steve had to show him how to work the mouse too. Cool stuff!
One thing that really struck me about Steve's life is his response to Failure; he doesn't dwell on it and always jumped back in with renewed vigor. That's something I need to learn; losing my Chief Engineer job two years ago just about killed me, and I need to get out of that mindset.
Anyway, great program. Recommended even for the haters!
