“Winter Is Coming” shirts are now IN THE STORE!!! [based on this comic]
When Steve Jobs stepped down as CEO of Apple, I made a comic about it and wrote a post about the impact Steve has has on my life and the world at large. I felt weird writing about him like he was gone, eulogizing a living man. I guess I wasn’t that far off. I’ll repost those words below along with some of my favorite Steve quotes.
I honestly feel that Steve Jobs, and his singular vision for his company, have done more to increase the acceptance of technology by the general public and the integration of that technology into our daily lives that any other single person in the last 50 years. Like his products or hate them [for whatever arbitrary reason] they have consistently strived to make high end, seemingly “magic” devices accessible to technophiles and n00bs alike. Your mom has an iPad. A device that wasn’t even on the horizon 5 years ago. Steve helped bring us [that] much closer to the future, and for that I will always be grateful to him. Not to Apple, but to him directly. Ever since he returned to Apple in the 90′s, Steve’s drive, commitment, integrity and borderline certifiable insanity have directly influenced how we interact with technology. He’s a total nutter, but great men often are. I think you’d be hard pressed to find any one person that REALLY changed the world (for better or worse) that wasn’t at least a little unhinged. Here’s hoping he’s in better health than I expect he is, and that his input will continue to lead to wonderful shiny gadgets for years to come.
“Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful… that’s what matters to me.” – Wikiquote, as quoted in The Wall Street Journal (Summer 1993).
“I want to put a ding in the universe.”
“Click. Boom. Amazing!” – Macworld keynote 2006
“We don’t get a chance to do that many things, and every one should be really excellent. Because this is our life. Life is brief, and then you die, you know? And we’ve all chosen to do this with our lives. So it better be damn good. It better be worth it.” – Fortune
“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 Jobs’ Stanford Commencement Address
“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” – Think Different, narrated by Steve Jobs
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement Address
I have made 100% of my comics (save the very first one),and all of books, t-shirts and other merchandise on Apple computers. I’ve even made comics on the iPad. I owe a large part of my career to Steve and for that I will always be grateful. You can read more comics I’ve made about Steve Jobs here, if you need some cheering up.
NOTE: I was halfway through a comic about the iPhone 4s yesterday, when I heard about Steve. I decided to hold off on it for a day or two. I will backdate it in the archive and post a link HERE when it’s done. [update: it’s done and linked]
COMMENTERS: Feel free to post any thoughts or fond memories of Steve, or links to tributes, etc. Did the products he created change your life? How? Anything he said or did that made YOU think differently? No negativity or Apple fanboy bashing. Please be respectful.
