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General discussion

Poll: Do you think Apple will be the same without Steve Jobs?

Oct 6, 2011 6:00AM PDT

Discussion is locked

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Should be a third option here, Maybe.
Oct 6, 2011 10:59PM PDT

The possibility of Steve's death has been built into the stock price and the running of the company for at least a couple of years.

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Steve Jobs left a lot of his spirit behind.
Oct 15, 2011 1:52AM PDT

Mr. Jobs left apple with excellent leadership before he left. What he did not leave was that spark of creativity which will have to be found or make itself known to Apple. He left his mark on the universe, now lets hope there is another spark out there to continue on making the Universe know we are here.

Jimmy

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Yes
Oct 9, 2011 1:24PM PDT

Steve Jobs didnt invent every great device at Apple all by himself. For 14 years he's been exhorting his colegues to do one thing: go for it. If you believe a man can teach others to open their eyes, then APPLE will thrive. There are 50,000 employees there, most of whom want to do their best work, who care about their customers, and will go all out to prove it. Steve Jobs taught them a valuable lesson-- how to live and experence lives worth living at work.

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Will Apple be the same
Oct 14, 2011 9:06AM PDT

I don't know.
I never bought any of their pricey gadgets.
There should have been another option on this poll.
May he rest in peace.

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Will Apple be the same
Oct 15, 2011 6:03AM PDT

Yes, I think Apple will be either the same or further improved under new leadership. It is precisely because of the greatness of the late Steve Jobs that I believe his successor(s) are more motivated to continue improving Apple in every way possible.

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Do you think Apple will be the same now
Oct 14, 2011 9:15AM PDT

Yes, Like the old saying goes. One monkey don't stop no show.

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No
Oct 14, 2011 10:02AM PDT

Even though Steve Jobs was rarely active, due to his illness, in the company over the last few years,
right until the very end he was the inspiration, visionary, motivator and muse of/for Apple.
He was truly one of a kind and I don't believe that Apple would be where they are today without him.
There might not have been an Apple today.
He was the guy who pushed ahead with his ideas and dreams against all the odds and
also against the opinions of many, many "experts" including in his own company
He was the iConciever as well as the iMidwife, an extremely hard act to follow.

I have never bought an Apple product, but I have immense admiration for his creative genius and business acumen. .

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The Captain may have gone, but the ship will sail on.
Oct 14, 2011 10:17AM PDT

One must not forget that although Steve was a riveting performer on stage, full credit for the products that made
Apple the star of innovation, truly belongs to the Apple Design and Marketing team.
The genius of the guys in the technical design team, is magic of Apple products.
Steve Jobs, God Bless him, was a very lucky man indeed to have such an awesome team behind him.

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No company is "the same" after its founder dies
Oct 14, 2011 11:31AM PDT

Of course it won't be the same; that's true by definition. But I don't think that's the real question. The real question--one of them, anyway--is whether the spirit he imbued in Apple will continue to flourish now that he's gone. I think it will, at least for a while. I hope most Apple employees will want to keep his spirit alive in the company to both honor his memory and continue the basic philosophy that made Apple so successful. By way of full disclosure: I have never owned an Apple product (I don't count iTunes here). Mostly that's because I've spent most of my career in IT and Accounting, where Windows tends to dominate. But I've always admired the simplicity and elegance of Apple products. I'm saving up for an iPad, for no reason other than when I saw it, my immediate reaction was "I want one of those".

On a strictly personal note: as a San Francisco-area resident for many years, I've always felt Steve Jobs as a positive presence (and a "home town boy"). He is one of those people who are somehow so important that I will always remember where I was and what I was doing when I heard of his passing. Even though I never met him, or even saw him in person, I will miss him.

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Steve Jobs & Apple
Oct 14, 2011 12:02PM PDT

No matter how some people think it is not so, everybody is replaceable. He was very valuable to Apple while he was alive, but there is absolutely nobody in the world that can't Be replaced successfully. I'm sure the Apple will miss him very much, but the new CEO has been mainly in control for quite some time. As long as they adhere to the Steve Jobs Philosophy, they should be just fine.

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Jobs invented very little
Oct 14, 2011 12:44PM PDT

Jobs invented very little. Only the smart phone comes to mind. Rather, he made better things that others had already brought to market.
If the company can continue to make products designed to be used by the users, it'll do well.

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Apple Will Continue to Expand
Oct 14, 2011 1:52PM PDT

Now that Steve is gone Apple will have to move on as a successful company. We know their products are solid. Designers are still there and they have a feel for what Apple consumers want in a product. Apple is different, they like to think outside the box. Since the Apple has the consumer business and followers, they lack enterprise. They never have done anything for the enterprise. Tim Cook is an ex-IBMer and spent twelve years at IBM as head of fulfillment of the company's PC business. The company was then sold to Lenovo. Plenty of executives carry iPhones and iPads. Plenty use Macs. But they are not really integrated with their business applications. Now that Window 8 is coming out enterprise may not want to support it. Mac OS X is more like Windows 7 than Windows 8 Metro. Maybe Tim Cook will partner as I have read these days online with developers to write business applications and programs and bring the Macs and servers to the workplace. I'm sure things will be different and at the same time it will make Apple perhaps eve better.

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A great salesman is always missed
Oct 14, 2011 2:29PM PDT

It won't be long before those who emotionally commit to Steve as Apple, to accept the next one, but it probably will slow new sales down a bit till that happens.
The peeps need a show piece to tell them they need to buy the next version or update. Steve did that greatly. How much he actually did in the company, on the products, who really knows (with out speculation), but he certainly lead his crew to keep doing it.

Hopefully, Pixar will come up with some great toons.

It's sad to see any visionary pass, let alone early.

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No, I don't think so.
Oct 14, 2011 3:07PM PDT

Steve Jobs was Apple's visionary from the beginning. When he was gone, Apple faltered. When he came back, Apple prospered. It was Steve Jobs' vision of the digital future that has kept Apple where it has been. Without that vision, Apple will become just another computer company.

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No
Oct 14, 2011 3:44PM PDT

I don't think that Apple will ever be the same with out Steve Jobs. Steve had such a creative mind and also brought the company up when it was gone. I think it will be OK for the next 5 years, but it will go down after that. Sad

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RE: Poll: Do you think Apple will be the same without Steve
Oct 14, 2011 5:44PM PDT

While many things can be passed along to new management teams, individuals can't be replaced.

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Missing tick box
Oct 15, 2011 8:00PM PDT

I think you have missed a tick box from your list.

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Like most geniuses, Jobs was one of a kind.
Oct 16, 2011 6:04AM PDT

I bought my first Mac in 1998, just after Jobs returned to Apple. Bought stock in the company the same year @ $14 a share. As soon as I began using the Mac, after a PC, I knew Apple would be a 'comer' and eventually would dominate the 'average' user market. The iPad will do exactly that!! I just got one and it does everything anyone who wants a computer but hates having to learn to use one wants: kids, grannies, IT illiterates to name just a few. The iPhone and iPod Touch was the prototype for the iPad.

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changes
Oct 16, 2011 8:51AM PDT

Steve Jobs ran Apple like a King,it was his way or the highway.Consequently he could change the direction and focus as needed.Future CEO's will most likely be the typical shareholders puppet and not have the control that Jobs had for better or worse it will not be the same.Will Apple become the new IBM and disappear?Only time will tell.

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It wont be the same, but...
Oct 18, 2011 1:19AM PDT

OF COURSE Apple will not be same without Steve Jobs,

However Steve spent years making sure his 'spirit' will live at Apple, and the innovation will continue for years to come.

It is possible Apple will be better, since less desirable traits of SJ will be vetted, intentionally or not.

RIP Steve, and TY

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Yes
Oct 18, 2011 6:16AM PDT

The apple company was more than one man it took all th talent to create the wonderful things apple has given us to date and the talent is still there and a man to decide if the next idea is worth going out to apple lovers has been put in place to carry on where steve has left off. He will be missed but his plan will go on.

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No, Apple wont be the same.
Oct 24, 2011 1:16AM PDT

Steve Jobbs had a vision for Apple computers which is probably not probably transferable.