Well said!
Wow! The fanboy-ism just doesn’t stop, does it? “What about Woz?”, “Bill Gates wasn’t a programmer.”, “scrambling to adapt…”, “they’re both marketing men”, “But it’s nice to see these two guys wasting time while Linux takes over the world”.
First “Woz” and Paul Allen have both received their share of accolades, respect - and no shortage of money. As have many, many, many other people who helped shape the industry. Watch the interview. Gates and Jobs both show respect for each other and the contributions of a lot of people.
Have you ever tried to release software WITHOUT marketing? There were a LOT of companies when these two hit the scene filled and RUN by world-class programmers - how did they fare? Believe it or not - it even takes “marketing” to give away free and open source products.
I thought the interview was great. You can “fanboy” all you want about how they stupidly lucked into the success they were granted, but you can’t dismiss the impact they’ve had on shaping the industry. Even in the past 5 years (though to a lesser degree than in the early years) these two have had a huge impact on the industry.
Had it not been them would someone else have done it. Probably. But they didn’t and neither did you, so channel your jealousy into something more constructive - like being the next Microsoft or Apple or Google or whatever.
…and I’m not even going to dignify “while Linux takes over the world.”
I don’t mean to rain on anyone’s parade and Gates and Jobs certainly deserve a lot of credit for their accomplishments but remember, they stand on the shoulders of giants.
Admiral Grace Hopper - Cobol
John von Neumann - ENIAC
Tommy Flowers - Colossus
Herman Hollerith - Hollerith Card
Joseph Marie Jacquard - Programmable Loom
Charles Babbage - Analytical Engine
Lady Ada Byron Lovelace - First Programmer
The list goes on and on and on…
hi,
is it possible to download that stuff somewhere. So tha I can watch it offline…? thx
What I have learned so far in life is that you can have the best product out there, but if you dont know how to market it, this product will stay in the top shelf gathering dust and then in the bargain bin.
This is very applicable to Apple and Microsoft.
Mr. Gates and Mr. Jobs saw greatness in others’ work, need how to blend it together to appeal the masses and that is why they are as successful as they are today!
Ever since I was a little kid and a proud nerd, I was very fascinated with computers. I programmed in Basic at age 8 and owned a few computers and tech toys (like the archaic tape deck for commodore 64, remember that? or how about ADAM? and TRASH 80). Anyway, there was a now defunct men of power magazine called “M” back in 1987 or so which chronicled the rise of Jobs in one issue and then Gates in another.
Yes, many do believe they were the original creators of modenr computer age… including me…
What these men did is that they recognize a need, shared their vision, made it very enticing for all, and most of all connect this need as a total necessity and that only they can provide the answer.
This is applicable to any product but Mr. Jobs and Gates knew how to mesh this together and not only made a great contribution to today’s society but revolutionize this generation with applicable use of technology.
I feel like I should go out and buy a Mac and sit it right next to my PC and link them together in eternal bliss. 
Cheers and respect for both Jobs and Gates! The world wouldn’t be the same without them both.
This is great. One thing that is interesting to me is that these are both software titans. Microsoft makes thier money through licenses, Apple makes money by selling devices that have thier software on it.
But I am in the process of reinstalling everything on my new laptop drive. What’s amazing to me is that there are at least 15 software packages I’ve needed to install to get back to life… and all but 3 of them are free! Meanwhile, much of my computing life is completely online with iGoogle, various websites I am “part of”, etc.
It will be interesting to see where this all goes…
I always feel kind of “middle of the road” type thing. I’m not quite old enough to be around with the punch cards, but I am young enough to remember a time when there was no computer in the house (minus my TI 49/9A) and begging and pleading for a 386SX-14 when I reached Junior High.
I’m the generation that “grew up” with computers, my kids I think were practically born with a computer in their mouth.
It is nice to have a couple of shoulders to stand on and see what the future will bring.
What about all we owe to Bell Labs UNIX, and, especailly, Berekly BSD?
What happened to universities innovating?
Why are they not doing it now?
I wonder, if we sent the computer age back 20 years to CLI’s and USENET, if we’d be doing more now. It’s a shame most don’t know what a CLI is anymore.
(NOTE: I’m mostly speaking for my generation here. I was born in the mid 90’s)