Steve Jobs dies at 56

[syj]

Oct. 5, 2011, 10:11 p.m. EDT
Steve Jobs dies at 56
By Dan Gallagher, MarketWatch

Reuters
Steve Jobs speaks at an Apple event in San Francisco in June that was destined to become the co-founder's final official appearance as head of the company..
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Steve Jobs, Apple Inc.’s co-founder and chairman, died Wednesday at the age of 56, following a long and complicated battle with cancer.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) issued a statement Wednesday night announcing the death of Jobs, who also served as the iconic consumer-electronics company’s chief executive two times over before stepping down in August, citing frail health.

THE DEATH OF STEVE JOBS
Reuters
Jobs dies at 56
Apple’s co-founder and chairman, dies Wednesday at the age of 56 following a long battle with cancer.


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In an email to employees, Tim Cook, Jobs’s handpicked successor, called Jobs a “visionary and creative genius” as well as a “dear friend and inspiring mentor.”

His statement did not give any further details of Job’s condition prior to his passing.

“Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple,” Cook wrote.

Jobs’s passing leaves behind the legacy of an iconic executive who has led Apple since 1997 — and has since managed to shake not one but three massive industries to their roots.

Known for his meticulous attention to detail, as well as a keen eye for aesthetics, a prescient sense of where technology was heading and an occasionally hot temper, Jobs has arguably left the stage at the top of his game.

Apple — the company Jobs and friend Steve Wozniak started in a garage in Cupertino, Calif., about 35 years ago — now sits at the top of the high-tech industry in terms of market capitalization, growth prospects and shareholder returns. It has also amassed a war chest of more than $76 billion that constitutes one of the fattest wallets among all companies in corporate America. See also: Steve Jobs: MarketWatch’s CEO of the Decade .

“The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come,” said Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, in a statement.

Gates, who spent most of his career in fierce competition with Jobs and Apple, added that, “for those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.”

Click to Play
Life of Steve Jobs
Apple CEO and co-founder died Wednesday at the age of 56. Here is a look back at the life of an American business icon.

The last few years for Jobs presented great challenges. Having survived a bout with pancreatic cancer in 2004, Jobs’s health problems continued to hang over the company. He took a six-month leave of absence in early 2009, during which he quietly underwent a liver transplant, it was later learned.

Jobs told Apple employees in January that he was taking another leave because of an unspecified medical condition. His last official public appearance as head of the company took place in June at the Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

Legacy

Jobs leaves behind a company that has become a power broker across the technology, media and telecommunications industries. Ironically, he has done this as Apple’s legacy business — the Mac computer — inhabits much the same spot it has for decades, as a well-regarded but niche player in the PC market.

A decision not to license the operating system to other hardware manufacturers back in the 1980s relegated Apple to a bit-player role in the PC market relative to then-archrival Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) , which managed to grab a dominant market share for its Windows OS that has remained to this day.

Jobs was ousted from Apple in 1985 only to return in 1996 through the company’s acquisition of his NeXT Computer — and ended up doing an end run around Microsoft.

Rather than continuing to wager the company’s fortunes on the slowing PC market, Jobs took Apple into such rapidly evolving areas as digital music and, later, cell phones. This turned out to be especially prescient, as the computing market has shifted to mobile devices that can pack the processing power and applications that PCs did just a few years prior.

In a speech in 2007, he quoted former hockey superstar Wayne Gretsky, saying he, too, preferred to “skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.”

The Mac has not been ignored, either. The company’s line of iMac desktops has set the standard for so-called all-in-one systems, which means the machine consists of a monitor, keyboard and mouse, with no tower unit. Apple’s latest laptop devices — in particular the Macbook Air — are thin enough to slide into a manila folder.

But computers now are among the smaller portions of Apple’s business. Nearly half of all revenues now come from the iPhone, which launched in 2007 and has since redefined the smartphone category.

Most other companies in the space now follow Apple’s lead by producing small touch-screen devices that run a variety of apps, as well as application marketplaces that still fail to rival the size of the App Store, which boasted more than 500,000 apps at last count.

Jobs also cemented a major role for himself well south of his Silicon Valley home base — in Hollywood and in the entertainment business more broadly.

A decade after its launch, Apple’s iPod still controls about two-thirds of the market for digital music players. Jobs was able to use the iPod to convince music executives to allow him to sell songs for 99 cents apiece.

That, along with later capabilities to play video over the device, helped turn the company’s iTunes store into the world’s largest retailer of music, TV shows and movies in digital form.

Jobs cemented his position in the media landscape through Walt Disney Co.’s (NYSE:DIS) purchase of Pixar Entertainment, which Jobs had bought from “Star Wars” creator George Lucas in 1986.

Pixar, having morphed into a producer of high-end computer-animated films such as the “Toy Story” series, was acquired by Disney in a $7.4 billion deal in 2006, making Jobs the largest shareholder at the entertainment conglomerate.

These uncanny moves have left Apple in an enviable position. The company still derives most of its profits from selling devices. But it also gets a cut of every song, movie, book and application it moves through its system to be used on its products.

As such, Apple as a company is unlikely to revisit the near-ruin that it experienced once before in Jobs’s absence. A deep pool of talent, extensive relationships with developers and an all-but-bottomless pile of money mean Apple has plenty of resources to continue innovation and defend its hard-won territory for many years to come.

“We believe the ethos of Steve Jobs, his vision and his work ethic, will forever drive Apple,” said Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray, who added that he was reiterating his outperform rating on the stock “without hesitation.”


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[syj]

Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... 1R-jKKp3NA

[syj]

The World Changing & Marketing Genius: Steve Jobs.

1) Apple I & II ==> PC เครื่องแรกของโลก พร้อมระบบปฏิบัติการณ์
2) Macintosh ==> PC เครื่องแรกพร้อมระบบติดต่อผู้ใช้แบบ Graphics (GUI)
เปลี่ยนแปลงโลกคอมพิวเตอร์ส่วนบุคคลครั้งที่สอง
3) iPod ==> MP3 Player ที่ประสบความสำเร็จสูงสุดมาพร้อมกับ iTune Store.
4) iPhone ==> the first Smart phone that really works!!! เปลี่ยนโลกของ Smart Phone ทั้งหมด
5) iPad ==> จุดเริ่มต้นของ Post PC era

อื่นๆ Apple Store: retail store that unlike others ...

และ "Liftetime Achievement" นำ Apple จาก บริษัทฯ ที่กำลังตกต่ำสุดๆ
ไปสู่ บริษัท ที่ใหญ่ที่สุดในโลก โดย Market Cap ไม่กี่เดือนก่อนหน้าที่
เขาจะจากโลกนี้ไป

The World will miss one of the greatest entrepreneurs in 20-21st century.

Rest in Peace.

[syj]

President Barack Obama: “Michelle and I are saddened to learn of the passing of Steve Jobs. Steve was among the greatest of American innovators — brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.

“By building one of the planet’s most successful companies from his garage, he exemplified the spirit of American ingenuity. By making computers personal and putting the Internet in our pockets, he made the information revolution not only accessible, but intuitive and fun. And by turning his talents to storytelling, he has brought joy to millions of children and grownups alike. Steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last. Because he did, he transformed our lives, redefined entire industries, and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history: he changed the way each of us sees the world.

“The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him.”

[syj]

Bill Gates, Microsoft Corp. co-founder and chairman:

“I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work.

“Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives.

“The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.

‘For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor.’

“For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.”

[syj]

Larry Page, CEO and co-founder of Google Inc. “I am very very sad to hear the news about Steve. He was a great man with incredible achievements and amazing brilliance. ... He was very kind to reach out to me as I became CEO of Google and spend time offering his advice and knowledge even though he was not at all well.”

Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google: “From the earliest days of Google, whenever Larry and I sought inspiration for vision and leadership, we needed to look no farther than Cupertino. Steve, your passion for excellence is felt by anyone who has ever touched an Apple product (including the macbook I am writing this on right now). And I have witnessed it in person the few times we have met.

“On behalf of all of us at Google and more broadly in technology, you will be missed very much. My condolences to family, friends, and colleagues at Apple.”

[ziannoom]

ขอไว้อาลัยครับ ขอให้สู่สุขคติ

[waririn]

ขอไว้อาลัยแด่ Steve Jobs ค่ะ
ขอบคุณคอมพิวเตอร์เจ๋งๆ อย่าง mac
ขอบคุณ iphone/ipad ที่ย่อให้โลกเราเล็กลง
เราจะไม่ลืมคุณ

[ดำ]

เสียชีพ แต่ชื่อยัง

คุณเป็นหนึ่งในตำนานของประวัติศาสตร์โลกโดยแท้

Stay Hungry Stay Foolish!!

[lengmanutd]

ทุกคนในโลกใบนี้ จะไม่ลืมคุณ

ขอบคุณสำหรับสิ่งดีๆ ที่มีให้เสมอมาอีกครั้ง

[Paul VI]

Rest In Peace ครับ