Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO

[Ben]

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has resigned as chief executive of the technology giant and will be replaced by chief operating officer Tim Cook.

Mr Jobs, who underwent a liver transplant following pancreatic cancer, said he could no longer meet his chief executive's duties and expectations.

The Silicon Valley legend will become chairman of the firm.

The 56-year-old has been on medical leave for an undisclosed condition since 17 January.

In a short letter to the board of Apple, Mr Jobs wrote: "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's chief executive, I would be the first to let you know.

"Unfortunately, that day has come. I hereby resign as chief executive of Apple.

"I believe Apple's brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.

Steve Jobs stood down as Apple CEO two months after unveiling the iCloud service in San Francisco
"I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you."

Apple board member Art Levinson paid tribute to Mr Job's contribution to the company: "Steve's extraordinary vision and leadership saved Apple and guided it to its position as the world's most innovative and valuable technology company."

Continues: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14659127

[Ben]

Despite being a long time coming, I've found the news rather saddening; rather more so than I'd have expected.

I actually believe Steve when he says Apple's best years are ahead of it, because I think his key achievement has been getting all the structures and people in place and instilling his vision within the institution.

But it's that very end of the awakening of Apple that makes me sad. For me the excitement always comes at the start of a new project, getting it going, and I think Steve is finally saying that the recovery is over - Apple is the new force of computing.

I'm going to sit in a darkened room now with the email he sent me. It may only say "Nope." but it's my "Nope." and he'll always be CEO to me. He may have been well compensated for what he has done at Apple, and elsewhere, but I still send massive thanks to Steve Jobs for everything he has done to revolutionise computing. Bravo.

[miffed]

Very sad day IMO

Of course many will deny his legacy , but as far as I'm concerned , Steve jobs revolutionised the PC Industry , the Mobile Phone industry , and the Music industry. - that is pretty amazing !!

I loved the fact that the story of the Mac ( and therefore the PC ) can be traced back , and the same guys in their garages / small companies over 30 years ago , were still the same guys at the helm of the industry today !! (Bill Gates ,Steve Ballmer , Woz & Steve Jobs )
Steve jobs is the last of these to retire ( come on ? Surely you can't expect me to include Ballmer ? ). And I can't help but find it a little sad

That said , much as I am grateful for all these guys pushed for , I would rather see SJ enjoy some retirement if possible rather than work himself to death

[pctech]

So you're one of the people he sent the curt responses to then.

I wouldn't wish illness or misfortune on anyone but he really doesn't sound like the nicest of people to me and not someone who actually cared about his customers at all, in fact the responses he gave to people, even those that were developing for the Mac and iPhone, stunk of arrogance which he ingrained in the culture of the company.

I attended a Mac introduction session at an Apple Store, we went through all the flashy stuff which was very nice but then I asked about any errors that might crop up to which the Apple Store employee dismissively snapped 'we don't have errors and why would you want to know about the CLI'

I was thinking before I went to the store about buying a Mac Mini to use alongside my PC to broaden my OS knowledge, that response firmly dissuaded me.

I hope that Jobs beats the odds and makes a full recovery after some time off but I sincerely hope it makes him more concerned about people and willing to engage with them more fully when discussing technology they love so much.

There's no question that he is a very clever individual but he does not need to be arrogant.

[Ben]

Maybe you have a point, but I personally think he does need to be arrogant. Apple just isn't a design-by-committee kind-of-place. They do it their way, and if we don't like it we can go elsewhere. The result is a company with laser focus and a strong identity.

Sucks that you had a bad Apple Store experience, but to be honest, while I've had some good ones myself, Apple has its fair share of retail dicks just like any other store chain. I wouldn't let it put me off the product.

[Hands0n]

If you live long enough you see these people come and go. Steve is just a year younger than me and it is a bit sobering to see what he has had to live with in terms of his health. But it has been truly inspiring and rather wonderful to see these "kids" in their garages build what has been a true revolution that spread across the planet. Their keen entrepreneurial and, in the early days, altruistic principles did what the mighty corporations like IBM could not even begin to imagine. It was IBM that said there would be no more than 100,000 personal computers sold across the world, ever.

I'd like to offer up another word than arrogance, that being "driven" which often comes across as arrogance but is something completely different. Gates and Jobs were both very driven individuals. As such, their own inspirations would not always be understood or accepted by others. And so driven individuals tend to be very forceful and uncompromising in their approach to sharing their thoughts and ideas. "No" is not a word they generally accept [or perhaps even understand], obstacles are seen as challenges to overcome, their mind's eye is never, ever, taken off the end goal. And yes, these individuals often upset and irritate people generally :)

I do think that it took a person like Steve Jobs to bring Apple back from the brink. They were in a dreadful state at that time. To look at them then and now would be to see two very different companies universes apart.

I think that the question now is whether or not the inertia that Apple has built is sufficient for them to survive as they are. Or will they bend and buckle at market forces, where previously Steve Jobs made the market. It takes a very strong approach to make and control markets. Will the new man be as capable?