Steve Jobs Isn't Dead - He's Just Resting

OK, OK, so no - this post isn't going to be another Apple fanboy re-hash of everything Steve Jobs has done from the beginning of time - nor will it be yet another analysis of Tim Cook (the new Apple CEO). But it will be my take on what Steve's resignation from Apple's CEO position yesterday will mean for Apple.

Wait for it...

Nothing.

Zip.

Zilch.

Nada.

Steve Jobs is not dead - he's just resting.

The designs (and suppliers and tooling and carriers) are all set for the iPhone 5, the iPad 3 and, I'm sure, more products than that are in the advanced stages of design/development. Plus, Steve is staying on as Chairman - so you just know he'll still have tons of input into the product development side of things (whether Apple wants him to or not).

Tim Cook, who has already had a taste of the helm before today - is, apparently, a very hard worker who gets stuff done. And, let's face it - if you can work with Steve Jobs for that long (since 1998) and not have Steve fire you - or get absolutely 100% burned out from the job - then that's a good thing.

Apple is the #1 or #2 most valuable company on the stock market (depending on the day) - and as I write this - the pre-market open for the stock is less than $10 below the closing price of $376.18. $376.18! For APPL stock! Who, in a million years, would have ever thought it would get past $200?

Certainly not me - otherwise, I'd just retire.

Regardless of his current health issues (and I sincerely wish him the best!) - Steve Jobs will always be.. well... Steve Jobs. A cat can't change his stripes - and Steve Job can't stop being... well... Steve Jobs.

Here's a perfect demonstration of what I mean: this "lost" video of Jobs in 1984 when he introduced the first Mac - pretty much stands on its own. Even back then, Jobs had a knack for the dramatic (a computer that talks[!] a computer with every whore font you can imagine[!], "...for the first time anywhere...", etc):



Here's a video of him doing the 2005 Stanford Commencement addresss:



So, Mr. Jobs- godspeed in getting better - and Mr. Cook - you're wanted on the set!

Apple: All Your GUI Are Belong To Us

Some of the biggest complaints about the new Google phone is its lack of multi-t0uch interface. You can thank Apple for that.

Palm is trying now to figure out how to not have the bejezus sued out of itself for having multi-touch capabilities on their soon-to-be-shipped Pre phone. You can also thank Apple for that.

It all stems from Patent No. 7,479,949 (originally filed in September 2007) that covers the multi-touch interface and all its gestures (swipe, pinch, rotation, etc.) that are used on the iPhone.

How heavily is Apple going to protect this new patent? The day after the patent was awarded, Apple COO Tim Cook warned any potential iPhone competitors about Apple's stance: "...[Apple] will not stand for having our (intellectual property) ripped off, and we'll use whatever weapons that we have at our disposal."

Whoa, Tim - don't blow a gasket, man! We know you guys came up with the multi-touch interface and that it's THE competitive advantage that sets the iPhone apart from all the other handset makers. Relax!

Yes, we all know Steve is on leave, and you don't want anyone to accuse you of sinking the ship while he's gone - but dude, take a chill.

There's this really cool thing - it's called "licensing." See, here's how it works: you retain ownership of the intellectual property and then you "license" it to other people so they can use it in their handsets as well. This way you make an absolute boatload of money, and the general consumer wins by getting a device that's really useful.... oh. Wait. Now I get it.

You figure that since every other handset maker on EARTH can come up with a much more feature-laden handset at a much lower price... that if you license the multi-touch stuff to them - then no one will ever buy another iPhone again?

Yeah, you got me there.

The good news is that your stock would be able to break 100 and you would have "recurring revenue" (that's where you make money over time rather than on one-off purchases). Hmmmm.... but what about the fact that you're now using that multi-touch stuff in your trackpads on your laptops as well?

This whole "licensing" thing might mean that other companies might come out with a device that would clean your clock, right? Something... oh I don't know... like a netbook with a 10.5 inch screen that would operate as a laptop, phone, tablet, music player, etc.?

Yeah, you got me again.

So, hats off to the foresight to Mr. Jobs again - it looks like it will be a Small Apple World after all.