Steve Jobs. What a dude!

Computers are the one item that makes me feel old.

My first introduction to computers was in 1978 at Villanova where I immediately had to learn how to write programs in Cobol, Fortran, APL, and BASIC on the mainframe computer located somewhere in a basement of the science building.

I loved programming but hated that I had to do it on punched cards. 

My sophomore year, they did away with punched cards and introduced a device to input our programs directly to the mainframe from a terminal and keyboard called TSO. 

I loved programming but with only a few TSO terminals, it made for a lot of 2am programing sessions. 

By the time I became a junior, we hardly ever did programing but we were learning how to design the components that computers are made of. I think I still remember how to dope a transistor and semiconductor.

In 1984, I joined IBM while they were rolling out their first personal computers. Since our focus was mainframes, midframes, and data centers, there wasn’t much attention paid to the PC. Plus, they were hard to use and basically designed for programmers. Who remembers DOS and the C> ?

Around that time, I needed a flyer designed and the lady invited me to her home to proof it. She was using an Apple computer. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was fast, easy to use and had a desktop with icons, not the C> .

Years later, Microsoft introduced the Windows operating system long after Apple had proven they had mastered ease of use years before.

I never owned an Apple product until I took a chance on the iPhone about 3 years ago. It hooked me on the smart phone concept.

After years of Windows based PCs, I always wanted to try an Apple PC. I hate how PCs are prone to viruses and decided that it was time to upgrade to the iMac about 2 years ago. It was the best technology investment I ever made.

I own a iPod which comes in handy every now and then.

I begged for Apple TV for Christmas and enjoy that thing like crazy.

I don’t own a laptop and I probably won’t until I can get a MacBook Air. 

The iPad is cool and I say that I don’t need one, but my resistance is getting low.


And there is nothing like an Apple Store. They actually employ real people who can answer your questions...what a concept.

As an engineer and consumer techy, I am proud to have been on earth at the same time as Steve Jobs to have seen and experienced his entire run as a visionary and game changer in how the world does business, socializes, entertains, and plays.

What a dude!