Steve Jobs Insult Response - Highest Quality

Summary

In this transcript, Steve Jobs addresses criticisms about his understanding of Java and OpenDoc. He emphasizes the importance of starting with customer experience rather than technology when developing products. Jobs admits to not knowing everything and acknowledges the hard work of his team at Apple. He expresses the need for support and patience as they navigate challenges and make decisions, aiming to create groundbreaking applications for the market.

Takeaways

• 😀 **Admission of Ignorance**: Mr. Jobs acknowledges that he may not know everything about certain technologies like OpenDoc.
• 🔍 **Technology vs. Customer Experience**: Jobs emphasizes the importance of starting with the customer experience and working backward to technology, rather than the other way around.
• 🚀 **Vision Over Technology**: He discusses the need for a cohesive vision that can drive sales and customer satisfaction, rather than just showcasing technology.
• 💡 **Mistakes and Learning**: Jobs admits to making mistakes and encourages learning from them, highlighting the importance of making decisions and being adaptable.
• 💼 **Commitment to Apple**: Despite offers of higher pay, the Apple team remains committed and is working hard to achieve the company's goals.
• 🛠️ **Execution is Key**: There is a strong focus on the execution of ideas and the creation of applications that can support Apple in the market.
• 🤝 **Support for the Team**: Jobs calls for support of the Apple team as they navigate through a critical phase of development.
• 📈 **Progress and Improvement**: He reflects on the progress Apple has made and expresses optimism for the future, despite the challenges and potential for mistakes.
• 🏆 **Customer-Centric Approach**: Jobs reiterates the need to focus on delivering incredible benefits to customers as the primary goal of product development.
• 📚 **Historical Analogy**: He uses the example of the first laser printer to illustrate the impact of a customer-focused approach and the excitement it can generate.

Q & A

What is the main criticism directed at Mr. Jobs in the script?

The main criticism is that Mr. Jobs is accused of not knowing what he's talking about, particularly in relation to Java and its ability to address the ideas embodied in OpenDoc.

What is the key principle Mr. Jobs emphasizes for creating a successful product?

Mr. Jobs emphasizes starting with the customer experience and working backwards to the technology, rather than starting with the technology and trying to figure out where to sell it.

What mistake does Mr. Jobs admit to making in the past?

Mr. Jobs admits to making the mistake of starting with the technology and trying to figure out where to sell it, rather than starting with the customer experience.

What example does Mr. Jobs use to illustrate the importance of customer experience?

Mr. Jobs uses the example of the first small laser printers, specifically the LaserWriter, and how its impressive print quality immediately demonstrated value to customers without them needing to understand the technology inside.

What is the current state of Apple's strategy according to Mr. Jobs?

According to Mr. Jobs, Apple's strategy involves focusing on delivering incredible benefits to customers and not just relying on the engineers to come up with awesome technology.

What does Mr. Jobs believe is the right approach for Apple's future?

Mr. Jobs believes the right approach is to support the team at Apple as they work hard to create applications that will benefit the market, even though some mistakes may be made along the way.

Who are some of the people Mr. Jobs mentions as working hard at Apple?

Mr. Jobs mentions Avi, John Marino, and Fred as examples of people working hard at Apple, along with a larger team working under them.

What does Mr. Jobs suggest will happen as a result of the team's hard work at Apple?

Mr. Jobs suggests that the team's hard work will result in the creation of good applications that will support Apple in the market.

How does Mr. Jobs view the potential for mistakes during Apple's current stage?

Mr. Jobs views the potential for mistakes as a positive sign because it indicates that decisions are being made, and any mistakes can be identified and corrected.

What does Mr. Jobs believe the company's attitude should be towards the team's efforts?

Mr. Jobs believes the company should support the team, acknowledging that they are working very hard and are committed to Apple despite offers of higher pay elsewhere.

Outlines

00:00

🤔 Critique of Technological Vision and Strategy

The speaker challenges Mr. Jobs' understanding of technology, specifically Java and OpenDoc, and questions his recent contributions. The speaker emphasizes the importance of starting with customer experience rather than technology when developing products. They recount Apple's past success with the laser writer and the importance of a clear customer benefit. The speaker acknowledges their own mistakes and the hard work of the current Apple team, advocating for support and patience as they navigate challenges and strive for innovation.

05:02

🚀 Progress and Optimism for the Future

The speaker expresses optimism about the current state of affairs compared to the past and conveys a sense of progress. They believe that despite some confusion or misunderstandings, the overall direction is positive, and the future holds promise for achieving greater success.

Keywords

💡OpenDoc

OpenDoc is an object-oriented component software architecture developed by Apple for creating compound documents. It was designed to allow different applications to work together to create and edit documents. In the script, the speaker is challenged to explain how Java addresses the ideas embodied in OpenDoc, indicating a comparison between the two technologies and their capabilities in creating integrated software solutions.

💡Java

Java is a high-level, class-based, object-oriented programming language that is designed to have as few implementation dependencies as possible. It is a general-purpose programming language intended to let application developers write once, run anywhere (WORA), meaning that compiled Java code can run on all platforms that support Java without the need for recompilation. The script implies a discussion on the relevance and integration of Java in the context of Apple's software ecosystem.

💡Customer Experience

Customer experience refers to the sum of all interactions a customer has with a company or product over the duration of their relationship. In the script, the speaker emphasizes the importance of starting with the customer experience and working backwards to the technology, suggesting that Apple's strategy should be centered around delivering benefits and experiences that customers value.

💡Technology-First Approach

A technology-first approach is a strategy where the development of technology precedes the identification of customer needs or market demand. The speaker in the script criticizes this approach, arguing that it can lead to a misalignment between the technology developed and what customers actually want or need.

💡LaserWriter

The LaserWriter is one of the first laser printers developed by Apple. It was a significant innovation in the printing industry, offering high-quality output. In the script, the speaker recalls the LaserWriter as an example of a product where the technology was so impressive that it was easy to sell to customers, illustrating the impact of groundbreaking technology on market success.

💡PostScript

PostScript is a page description language developed by Adobe Systems, which is used primarily in the electronic publishing and desktop publishing industries. In the script, PostScript is mentioned as part of the technology stack within the LaserWriter, highlighting its role in enabling high-quality printing capabilities.

💡AppleTalk

AppleTalk is a proprietary suite of networking protocols developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh computers. It was one of the first networking systems that did not require a central server to facilitate communication between devices. In the script, AppleTalk is mentioned as part of the LaserWriter's technology, indicating its role in early networking solutions for Apple products.

💡Vision and Strategy

Vision and strategy refer to the long-term goals and plans a company has for its future. The speaker discusses the importance of having a cohesive vision and strategy for Apple, emphasizing the need for a clear direction that aligns with customer needs and can drive significant sales.

💡Mistakes and Decision Making

The speaker acknowledges that mistakes will be made along the way, but also emphasizes the importance of making decisions and learning from those mistakes. This concept reflects a pragmatic and iterative approach to product development and business strategy, where trial and error are seen as part of the process.

💡Execution

Execution in a business context refers to the process of effectively and successfully implementing a company's strategy. The speaker mentions the hard work and dedication of the Apple team, indicating that strong execution is critical for turning a vision into reality and for delivering on the company's goals.

💡Support and Loyalty

Support and loyalty are highlighted as important factors in the success of a company's initiatives. The speaker speaks about the need to support the team at Apple as they work through challenging times, and notes the loyalty of team members who choose to stay with the company despite offers of higher pay elsewhere.

Highlights

Mr. Jobs acknowledges that he may not know what he's talking about on several counts.

Challenge posed to Mr. Jobs to explain how Java addresses OpenDoc's ideas.

Mr. Jobs is asked to discuss his personal contributions over the past seven years.

Admission that there are aspects of OpenDoc that are superior and not familiar to Mr. Jobs.

Emphasis on the difficulty of integrating specific technologies into a cohesive vision for mass market sales.

Mr. Jobs stresses the importance of starting with customer experience rather than technology.

Confession of past mistakes made by Mr. Jobs in prioritizing technology over customer needs.

Apple's strategy is centered around delivering incredible customer benefits.

The story of the LaserWriter and its groundbreaking technology is recounted.

Mr. Jobs reflects on the simplicity of the LaserWriter's appeal to customers.

A call for Apple to return to its roots of creating impactful customer experiences.

Regret expressed over OpenDoc becoming a casualty in Apple's strategic direction.

Mr. Jobs apologizes for his lack of knowledge in certain areas.

Highlighting the hard work and dedication of the Apple team, including key figures like Avie and John Marino.

The team at Apple is described as working tirelessly despite offers of higher compensation elsewhere.

Mr. Jobs calls for support of the Apple team as they navigate a critical phase in the company's development.

Acknowledgment that mistakes will be made but are necessary for progress.

A vision for Apple's future that includes learning from mistakes and creating great applications.

Mr. Jobs expresses optimism about the direction Apple is heading compared to the recent past.

Transcripts

yes mr. jobs you're a bright and

influential man here it comes it's sad

and clear that on several counts you've

discussed you don't know what you're

talking about I would like for example

for you to express in clear terms how

say Java in any of its incarnations

addresses the ideas embodied in open doc

and when you're finished with that

perhaps you could tell us what you

personally have been doing for the last

seven years

you know you can please some of the

people some of the time but

one of the hardest things when you're

trying to affect change is that people

like this gentleman are right in some

areas I'm sure that there are some

things opendoc does probably even more

than I'm not familiar with that nothing

else out there does and I'm sure that

you can make some demos maybe a small

commercial app that demonstrates those

things the hardest thing is what how

does that fit in to a cohesive larger

vision that's gonna allow you to sell

eight billion dollars 10 billion dollars

a product a year and one of the things

I've always found is that you've got to

start with the customer experience and

work backwards to the technology you

can't start with the technology and try

to figure out where you're gonna try to

sell it and I've made this mistake

probably more than anybody else in this

room and I've got the scar tissue to

prove it and I know that it's the case

and as we have tried to come up with a

strategy and a vision for Apple it

started with what incredible benefits

can we give to the customer where can we

take the customer not not starting with

let's sit down with the engineers and

and figure out what awesome technology

we have and then how are we going to

market that and I think that's the right

path to take I remember with the laser

writer we built the world's first small

laser printers you know and there was

awesome technology in that box we have

the first canon laser printing cheap

laser printing engine in the world in

the United States here at Apple we had a

very wonderful printer controller that

we design

we have Adobe's PostScript software in

there we had Apple talk in there just

awesome technology in the box and I

remember seeing the first printout come

out of it and just picking it up and

looking at it thing you know we can sell

this because you don't have to know

anything about what's in that box all we

have to do is hold that something goes

do you want this and if you can remember

back to 1984 before laser printers

it was pretty startling to see that

people went wow yes and that's that's

where Apple's got to get back to and you

know I'm sorry that open Docs a casualty

along the way and I readily admit there

are many things in life that I don't

have the faintest idea what I'm talking

about so I apologize for that too but

there's a whole lot of people working

super super hard right now at Apple you

know avi John Marino Fred I mean the

whole team is working burning the

midnight oil trying to and and people

you know hundreds of people below them

to execute on some of these things and

they're they're doing their best and I

think that what we need to do and some

mistakes will be made by the way some

mistakes will be made along the way

that's good because at least some

decisions are being made along the way

and we'll find the mistakes we'll fix

them and I think what we need to do is

support that team going through this

very important stage as they work their

butts off they're all getting calls

being offered three times as much money

to go do this throughout the valleys hot

none of them are leaving and I think we

need to support them and see them

through this and write some damn good

applications to support Apple out in the

market that's my own point of view

mistakes we made some people will be

pissed off some people will not know

what they're talking about

but it's I think it is so much better

than where things were not very long ago

and I think we're gonna get there