Steve Jobs

Although this book is quite thick, it's a quick read. My review isn't so much about the book or the style it's written in, etc. It's about what I learned from it.

Jobs' management style was not the best, but he did surround himself by the best people–A players–and didn't suffer fools as it were. He had no room for mediocrity. If someone failed at his job, he was fired. I admire that he was able to make decisions without shifting blame or asking a committee. He often took credit for other people's work, but that often happens in the workplace anyway.

This was an exhausting read and I didn't even read it, I listened to it on audiobook. The book was very well written and seemed to be very well researched. I loved Walter's way of writing about Jobs.

Jobs on the other hand had no redeeming qualities in my book. The people he lead do make nice products but there is no need to pummel people all the way to get that.

This guy was a walking paradox. Brilliant yet stupid (all fruit, all carrot diets? Cmoooon). Completely void of empathy but put user experience above all. Sensitive and cries at the drop of a hat but cold and cruel. I could go on and on but the one thing remains - this guy was our generation's Einstein or Ford.

This book did a great job at painting Steve Jobs in a refreshingly human way; brilliant, innovative, narcissistic, imprudent. It also traversed the golden age of technological innovation in the computer industry in a way that filled me with wonder (causing me to look at the digital landscape of 2020 and yawn in response), and left me semi-nostalgic for those childhood years when new inventions were happening and products were painstakingly curated. From a product perspective Jobs is a true inspiration - a staunch believer in absolute simplicity and human-centric design - heavily influenced from those impressionable meets with the Bauhaus school of design. His philosophy of highly controlled hardware and software unity is delicately outlined and counter-balanced with the (kind of) open-source approach from Microsoft et al, which also took the book into the territory of his many business adversaries. His saving and reinvigorating of Pixar was another pleasant history lesson (a company he often isn't associated with) which was a nice break from the corporate backdrop of the biography.

This is one of the very few books I have read through in less than a months period of time and being 600+ pages long I have got to give credit to Walter Issacson and his informative writing. Sure it may come across as something that's lacking of an opinionated voice from the biographer, but for a person as complex as Steve Jobs, he did well enough to put enough information on the table for one to be able to draw their own conclusion on it. And I'm sure there will be many other books that will try to do the same.

As for Steve Jobs.. I'm inspired and I could related to the some of the things that he did and why he would have done them (was I caught in his charisma to think I am so much like him?)... Kudos to Jobs' balls of steel to think different, assert his views to the world and will the world and the rules to his liking...

As a user of Apple products and a follower of their fortunes, this was a must-read for me. I have listened to many pundits discussing the book, and no review was better than that of Ars Technica's John Siracusa on the 5by5 podcast, Hypercritical. He was rather scathing of the book in so much as it was written by the wrong guy. Isaacson is not a tech guy and is writing about something he does not really understand.

That said, I still had to read the book for myself and, although I didn't enjoy it a great deal, it was still worth reading.

Make of that what you will.

How does one review a book–the biography Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson–when the book itself is more or less a review of Steve Jobs' life?

Anybody who reads seems to be reading, or have read, Steve Jobs. Consequently there have already been numerous quotes, reviews, and discussions both about the book, and about Steve Jobs in general. It's difficult not to tread too much on what's already been said, and impart a unique position, but alas, it's worth a shot.

Steve Jobs is a marvelously engrossing book, about one of the world's greatest technology visionaries. It details nearly his entire life, including where he came from–both his genetic parents, and his adopted parents. From the very beginning, it's clear that Jobs must have been insufferable to live with growing up, and even more insufferable as an adult.

What makes Steve Jobs so intriguing are all the behind-the-scenes moments that intersperse the book. Even to those who are familiar with Steve Jobs' life and career, there was a lot of new information presented in this book–both good and bad. In the end, it's clear that though Steve Jobs built a remarkable company, he did so by being shrewd, manipulative, uncompromising, and most of all: unapologetic. His vision of the way people should use technology was unwavering, much to the chagrin of many in the media, and the outside world itself.

It's clear in this book that Steve Jobs was a very difficult person to work for and with, live with, or even to be around in any way. He could be extraordinarily demeaning to people at one moment, and treat them as if they were the greatest person alive the next.

What makes this biography so interesting is the way Isaacson details both the good and bad sides of Steve Jobs. He criticizes Jobs' faults, and praises his strengths–sometimes simultaneously. But it's clear that this biography was designed to portray Steve Jobs, and not some mythical figure who could do no wrong. For those who weren't aware of the way Jobs handled his day-to-day duties, and the way he interacted with those around him, the book may come as a shocking blow; Steve Jobs was not a great guy. Instead, he focused his efforts and his energy on making great products that he believed in.

At times surprisingly callous, and at other times genuinely amiable, Steve Jobs was a man who–perhaps by luck–changed the world. He made no apology for being the way he was; that was simply Steve Jobs.

Steve Jobs is a fascinating read, and–though lengthy–is a page-turner. Though completed before Steve Jobs' death on October 5th, 2011, it's clear that the author knew it was likely to be published after Jobs succumbed to his cancer. In many ways, it's a fitting epigraph to a life that was filled with contentious and arduous bouts with corporate executives, celebrities, and even his closest friends and family. Most of the book is spent describing how Jobs became to be the man he was, and also about his ideas and opinions that led to revolutions in so many different industries. It's clear that without Steve Jobs, the world would likely be a very different place.

At the same time, it's also clear that Steve Jobs really was the main force driving Apple's innovation. Though Apple has been built to inherit Jobs' design aesthetics, and culture, one has to wonder how long his influence will continue beyond his death. Is there anyone who will take up the mantle of perfection that Jobs insisted upon? Time will tell, of course.

Steve Jobs is also a wonderful book in that it isn't overtly technical in nature. Someone who's not necessarily into the tech scene, or computers can still pick up and read the book without difficulty. Though there are certainly sections that will enthuse tech people, it doesn't get too complicated for the average reader. It really is a wonderfully intriguing, and well-written biography.

This book is one of the best on Steve Jobs for two reasons: 1. It has all the insider information into how Jobs was thinking about projects and how he attacked issues. 2. It pulled no punches when showing him in a negative light. In the end, the book is very open about his life, the right and wrong things he's done, and an honest introspective into one of the greatest CEO's of the 20th century.

Executive Summary: Despite my generally negative opinion of Jobs and my disagreement with his views of technology, I found this book excellent.

Audiobook: Dylan Baker's voice was instantly recognizable to me, even if I didn't know his name. Better known as an actor than an audiobook narrator, he nevertheless does a good job here. I'm not sure what to hope for with a non-fiction narrated apart from clear speech, good volume and inflection. You get all of that here. I tend to prefer to consume non-fiction in audio, and this is definitely a good option for this book.

Full Review
If you ask people their opinion of Steve Jobs, you may get a wide variety of answers. To many he was this brilliant innovator and designer, with a cult-like following. To me though, he's largely been an overpraised Asshole who got more credit than he deserved.

This book has changed my opinions somewhat. 1) He's a larger asshole than even I thought. 2) He does deserves more of the credit that I was was willing to give him for several key impacts to technology and culture.

I earn my living as a Software Engineer. My love of computers came at an early age. My first computer: An Apple IIgs. I came to learn this was basically a souped up version of the original Apple II with improvements borrowed from the Macintosh after that failed to be a success and Steve Jobs was maneuvered out of power at Apple.

While to most people that will never be a device of significance, it changed my life. I still have it. I still love it. It's also the only Apple product I've ever owned, and I wasn't the one who bought it, my parents were.

I've always had a hate/love relationship with Apple. I can appreciate the innovations of many Apple products: The Mac, The iPod, iPhone and iPad. But I've never wanted to own one. I find the closed nature of their products and lack of customization frustrating and a deal breaker. Steve Wozniak is my favorite Apple Steve, not Mr. Jobs.

Without Steve Jobs, some of these products may never have come to be, and certainly not as early. And they certainly wouldn't have been Apple products.

He didn't really design or innovate much though. What he did was push his talented engineers to innovate and accomplish things even they didn't think possible. He largely did this by being an asshole. Constantly. Calling people's ideas shit one week then taking credit for them as his own the next. Oh and that doesn't get into all the issues he had as a father or friend.

I could never have worked for Apple or Jobs. I probably wouldn't have been up to his standards anyways. As a huge computer/technology fan though, this is a must read book. Like him or hate him you can't disregard his impact on not only technology but culture.

My Windows PC (or Linux PC for that matter) wouldn't be the same without the Mac (although I think far too many people are unaware of the innovations of Xerox PARC engineers). My Android phone wouldn't be nearly as good without the iPhone.

My favorite quote from this book came from Bill Gates who said something to the effect that a closed system can work, but only with Jobs at the helm. I think Apple without Steve Jobs isn't nearly as good. I don't think that's because Tim Cook isn't an asshole though. It's because what Steve Jobs had was vision, and good taste for design. Not to mention amazing showmanship. I just don't like his products. But Apple fans are legion, and for good reason.

The Open vs. Closed debate rages on. Both sides have their merits. First it was Apple and Microsoft, now Apple and Google. I'm firmly on the open side, but understand why the closed side is so popular/successful.

Now it feels like innovation has largely stalled as companies are trying to push several technologies (I'm looking at you Smart Watches) that no one seems to really want or care about, and releasing only minor upgrades in hardware and software every year, rather than doing anything groundbreaking. I just hope Apple can start innovating again soon, because we can use the competition again.

Steve Jobs was a complicated person. I'm thankful for his contributions to technology. I'm also thankful I never knew him.

Short review: It really was a good book. Could have used some editing in the last quarter of the book. (Did not need a section on the iPhone 4 antena problems or iCloud). But Jobs is a compelling figure and Isaacson had a lot of access. Which leads me to think that there really needs to be a bit more distance from Jobs for a definitive biography. It was almost as much about Apple as it was about Jobs, so some might not be thrilled about that if they are not interested in the growth of the company.

There were very interesting thoughts on what it means (and what it takes) to be great.

My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/jobs/