Thursday, October 06, 2011

The man and his ideas

Dear Jobs,
I am commemorating your passing in the only way I know how. I am waiting for the library to open so that I may borrow a book on Apple and since Apple = you, I know I will get my fix of you yet. When I was in middle school, I asked to get an iPod for my birthday. I didn't get that. When I was getting a new laptop, I asked to get an Air. I didn't get that either. On occasions I use the iPhone. The only whole Apple product I use most (minus whatever patents held) is iTunes, and that's for iTunes U. You can tell I don't belong to the cult of Apple. And since Apple = you, I don't belong to the cult of Jobs.
I was stunned when I learnt about Pixar, but frankly I still didn't think you were that great. Well, you were dishy in your youth, that's it.
I use my Android proudly. Yet when I am asked by someone if (s)he should get an iPhone or Android, of late I have kept silent, especially when it is someone I care. The iPhone remains an accessory of style.
When, and if, published, this post will join millions in their remembrance of you. You will be vilified in circles, for that's how life goes. Your legacy will fade slightly; my brother's generation grew up with computers, digital music players, animated graphics. But he will know the difference when he picks up a Mac. (I am told.) He certainly likes the iPad enough.
What have I to hold of you? Me, who has never stepped into your reality distortion field? Nothing but the circumstance of your birth, your black turtleneck + Levi's jeans, your dropping out of Reed and staying on anyway, your experimentations (I once won a short argument with a friend on how drugs ARE evil), your relationships, your devotion to quality and the whole experience, your very public endorsement that Art goes everywhere and your ability to get what you want.
Yours,