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Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

daringfireball.net

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Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#101

Post by spxdcz »

onenine wrote: post #79
spxdcz wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The difference is that Princess Diana made very little difference to most of our lives. Steve Jobs made such a huge impact in all of our (technologists, programmers, consumers) lives. Do you remember what mobile phones used to be like before the iPhone? How OSX kick-started the style of graphic design that is still in-trend, with aqua? How ugly consumer devices generally were? How he made design matter again? How dar…

Rich people can buy apple products, lots of poor people have been killed and maimed by landmines. It's best not to be so glib about how important a god to consumers was when some people did important charitable things despite being a figure in the tabloids.

I apologise if this came off as glib, it certainly wasn't meant to be. I spent four weeks in Laos last December and visited the COPE center in Vientiane; the landmine issue is a horrible, real thing that people have to cope with (and get killed by) every day, and I didn't mean to imply that what Diana did wasn't amazing.

BUT, to most (lucky) people reading Hacker News, Steve Jobs has had more of an impact on our day-to-day lives. He was a hero to many of us, and I don't think it's correct for some people to decide who is and isn't a valid hero. It's all about context.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#102

Post by demoo »

Very nice post. Reading through the comments brought this back to me:

You could do Richard Branson's job. Most of the time anyway.

Except for what he does for about five minutes a day. In those five minutes, he creates billions of dollars' worth of value every few years, and neither you nor I would have a prayer of doing what he does. Branson's real job is seeing new opportunities, making decisions that work, and understanding the connection between his audience, his brand, and his ventures.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#103

Post by [deleted] »

jodrellblank wrote: post #97
timr wrote: post #80

"There is no grass in Moscone West." There's a gigantic grass lawn right next door, in Moscone Center. Steve Jobs was a great man, but this remembrance hit a sour note for me. It's not about Steve Jobs, so much as it's about an outsider's fantasy of what Jobs' (very private) inner life was like. And if this bears no resemblance to reality, it's not a remembrance at all. It could even be offensive to the people who kn…

Jobs' (very private) inner life. [..] Remember the man for the person that he was, not for the person that you imagined him to be. Do you not see a problem in pointing out his very private nature, then scorning people for imagining that instead of knowing it? It could even be offensive to the people who knew him best. And now you're chastising people for fantasizing about SJ because of how you fantasize his friends r…

[deleted]

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#104

Post by timr »

jodrellblank wrote: post #97
timr wrote: post #80

"There is no grass in Moscone West." There's a gigantic grass lawn right next door, in Moscone Center. Steve Jobs was a great man, but this remembrance hit a sour note for me. It's not about Steve Jobs, so much as it's about an outsider's fantasy of what Jobs' (very private) inner life was like. And if this bears no resemblance to reality, it's not a remembrance at all. It could even be offensive to the people who kn…

Jobs' (very private) inner life. [..] Remember the man for the person that he was, not for the person that you imagined him to be. Do you not see a problem in pointing out his very private nature, then scorning people for imagining that instead of knowing it? It could even be offensive to the people who knew him best. And now you're chastising people for fantasizing about SJ because of how you fantasize his friends r…

"Do you not see a problem in pointing out his very private nature, then scorning people for imagining that instead of knowing it?"

No. Maintaining a private life does not give anyone carte blanche to fill in the details with fiction. People may do it, but that doesn't make it right.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#105

Post by jarek »

greyish_water wrote: post #49
jarek wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, sorry. I'll go hide in my house while the funeral takes place in my backyard. edit: by the way, "If you read this far, you should follow me on twitter here" - classy.

"Gotta tell everyone how you feel."

Touché.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#106

Post by nitrogen »

jgrahamc wrote: post #13

Many years ago a colleague, Steve Holtzman, suddenly discovered he had colon cancer. Within a year he had faded away (it seemed almost literally) and was gone. He had money and access to the best doctors, but he wasn't vigilant (he had ignored odd weight loss and bowel trouble) and so it was too late. Although Jobs didn't die of a "man's disease" there are lots of men killers out there that can be stopped if you look…

In light of this, can anyone recommend any self-employed/entrepreneur health plans in the USA that provide reasonable coverage for preventive testing and checkups?

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#107

Post by christoph »

timr wrote: post #80

"There is no grass in Moscone West." There's a gigantic grass lawn right next door, in Moscone Center. Steve Jobs was a great man, but this remembrance hit a sour note for me. It's not about Steve Jobs, so much as it's about an outsider's fantasy of what Jobs' (very private) inner life was like. And if this bears no resemblance to reality, it's not a remembrance at all. It could even be offensive to the people who kn…

As a complete aside to Steve Jobs, I have to say that one of my all time favorite memories of the last decade is sitting on top of the Moscone Center (for the fifth day in a row) a few years back at an Oncology show - in a very transitional period of my life. If you've never been there, it's hard to describe. Below you in the halls is a barrage of activity and noise and up there it's peaceful and tranquil.

I've been to convention centers on every continent, on a weekly basis for the last five years. I've seen more of hotels/conference centers than I have of my family and friends in that time, but I still think back to sitting on top of that building with sound of laughter, happiness & peace, while eating a meal with a it's own hand picked/hand chosen tea, plate, cutlery and everything else, picked to go just with that one meal on the menu and think of it's basic, intrinsic magical symphony. I guess in someways that's why I think of that memory today and how that memory relates to Steve Jobs, Apple and all he created.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#108

Post by Gormo »

andrewljohnson wrote: post #88
timr wrote: post #80

"There is no grass in Moscone West." There's a gigantic grass lawn right next door, in Moscone Center. Steve Jobs was a great man, but this remembrance hit a sour note for me. It's not about Steve Jobs, so much as it's about an outsider's fantasy of what Jobs' (very private) inner life was like. And if this bears no resemblance to reality, it's not a remembrance at all. It could even be offensive to the people who kn…

Steve Jobs meant something different to each of us, and for the vast majority it's just fantasy. I think this blog was a tad touching, and a tad overwrought, but not sour.

> ...meant something different to each of us, and for the vast majority it's just fantasy.

This is true of just about everything.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#109

Post by hyperbovine »

mapleoin wrote: post #12
technoslut wrote: post #5

Gruber's talent for writing never ceases to amaze me. It's always incredible that a tech blogger can write so well and, in this case, poetically. Five minutes ago I had just watched Jobs' commencement speech on CNN for the at least the 50th time. I put work on hold just to hear it again. Every time I hear it I gain strength. I've never had a dad but I did have heroes. Steve Jobs is one of them.

Funnily I got the exact opposite impression. I thought it was cheesy and kitsch.

Agree completely. Yerba Buena Gardens anyone? http://g.co/maps/wy2se

The whole thing is contrived and smacks of just the sort of prying, cultish obsession with the private lives of celebrities that Steve Jobs treated with scorn. If it wasn't appropriate to write crap like this when he was alive, I don't see why it is now that he's dead.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#110

Post by vito »

gurkendoktor wrote: post #93
alanh wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW, Lion users on new-ish hardware should be able to use three fingers to double-tap on words to define them: http://cl.ly/3w2r3p42261w1z2j1X3F

This function has been there at least since Leopard and the old shortcut still works: cmd+shift+D. Saddens me that Chrome still doesn't support it at all, and it breaks in Safari when web-fonts are involved. With additional dictionaries, this feature is pure gold for language learners.

Works for me in the latest Chrome, except the shortcut is Ctrl+Cmd+D (I think it always has been?). For a long time it didn't work, though.
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