Report: Steve Jobs cuts back on instant messaging

[Jack Mac]

Happy birthday Steve.

And FO Mr. Cringley!

[TheNipponese]

You know, I just want to say your attack on Cringely is kinda fucked up. The man has been in the game for a lot longer than any of us, and even had a relationship with Jobs and Apple when it was still a garage operation. I understand the need for objectivity, but this is a little over the top. Btw, his Triumph of The Nerds is an amazing doc so show some respect.

[chadisawesome]

I get the point of discrediting this guy, because this is pretty ridiculous, but the sentence that has the bio excerpt, looks just thrown in the middle of the story haphazardly and made the whole article difficult to read.

[bigpics]

Originally Posted by FitzGerald

So this comes from a guy who once predicted that pc's would be obsolete by the year 2000...give me a break! I don't think this guy knows anything.

I hope Steve Jobs makes a recovery from whatever he's suffering from and that he feels up to and wants to continue to lead one of the most unique companies in the last 100 years, and know that the Cringely's and Macalopes of the world make their bones on often half-assed hyperbole.

however, while he was off by a decade or a little more, PC's - in their 1990's roles - are already becoming obsolete with decreasing sales - and it IS more and more about "the software," for which - among the folk - AC-tethered PC's are already a niche product, and just as notebooks began to claim supremacy as the digital content delivery system kings of the hill, they're in the process already of being supplanted by smart phones, netbooks, and dedicated media browsing and viewing devices (Kindles, Apple TV's, Netflix boxes, etc., etc.).

for the uses and predelictions of most - especially in the hard times a'fallin' and which will be with us for some time - a $1500 MacBook (even the $999 model) is severe overkill.

especially when a $300 gee-gaw will do the jobs they want a connected digital device to do.

it's long been speculated this is behind Apple's delay in entering the wide product gulf between iPhone and MacBook, i.e., that their calculations are showing that fully OS X devices in this class might sell very well indeed, but would seriously cannabalize sales of their high-margin, high-gross revenue portables in a way the iPhone and Touch do not.

they can't roll back the trend for long, however, and with the iPhone are part of it, so they will enter this space once they feel they have a product that will (or can plausibly claim to) redefine the concept of an ultra-light, sub-$700 device.

Consumer and vertical market desktop PC's won't disappear (IBM still markets mainframes with roots in the 60's and earlier), and notebook sales may continue to even grow (with economic recovery) before leveling off and ultimately declining some, but the real growth segments for "software delivery" will absolutely be elsewhere.

I've never seen anybody doing anything in a coffee shop with a notebook they couldn't be doing with a lighter, cheaper machine, and once people fully recognize this and that they can do on-the-road presentation shows with something they can carry in their pocket or at least not much bigger than a legal pad, well then, by gum, that's what they'll do.

so it's not Cringely's original thought, surely, but it is all about the software. That is, the hardware of any era is merely the Trojan Horse, with the soldiers - the software - being carried along for the ride.

and guess what? it will only continue to be so, and these new icons of their time will be replaced too.....

[Virgil-TB2]

Originally Posted by Funky Chicken

Maybe he just has his iChat status setting on "Invisible"??

Or he switched to another service, or they are testing a new iChat, or, or, or ...

I think if Cringley is allowed to publish this kind of crap he should say exactly *how* he "checked it out." Does he just mean that others on the same chat group haven't seen Steve? Or that he has actual information that the reason for the absence is dire illness? What he has published is the equivalent of some idiot posting here and merely adding "I know this to be a fact!" at the end. Who says so?

That's violating one of the first rules of journalism. If you know something to be true and have checked it out, then you have to say what you checked and what the result was. Just adding "and this is absolutely true!!!" is as relevant as adding ZOMG!

[Virgil-TB2]

Originally Posted by bigpics

... however, while he was off by a decade or a little more, PC's - in their 1990's roles - are already becoming obsolete with decreasing sales - and it IS more and more about "the software," ...

He said "obsolete" so he is off by more than a decade, since the decade has all but passed already and we are actually at the very *beginning* of this process. The PC industry lives on hype and unbridled Futurism true, but Cringley was still wrong, and by at least two decades, possibly three.

Since when he said that it was the 90's, this means he was off by something like a factor of four to six. Something taking four to six times longer than your prediction, is pretty bad by any standard.

[astrosmash]

I thought it was an interesting read. I agree with Cringely's assertion that as long as Jobs is CEO or is expected to return as CEO then the question of his health is a valid subject. I also agree that Jobs *likes* to be talked about.

I think Apple's handling of Steve's current health issues is suspicious to say the least. To frame it as simply a privacy issue is rather ridiculous; Apple executives know as well as anyone that any word of Jobs leaving Apple would cause a huge hit to their stock value (even though the company would be just fine either way). Clearly, the situation is such that they can't risk being transparent about it.

So if Jobs logs into chat less and less until he's not on at all, that's at least interesting. Cringely isn't suggesting anything more than that. He's not suggesting that Jobs is too ill to log into his computer, just that he's not using his computer. When you're taking a break, unplugging from the grid is a good thing to do.

It's interesting, and I'm glad Cringely reported it.

[krispie]

Good God, how desperate IS this site for a 'story'?!

[Ted13]

Originally Posted by Johnny Mozzarella

Maybe he finally realized iChat doesn't work.

Word. I've switched to Skype for Video chats -- iChat lately has been just awful.

So far as Cringely and the stupid article -- no kidding -- AI should know better than to reprint this stuff. Maybe Mrs. Jobs grocked that Steve was still micromanaging Apple when he should be relaxing and banned his iChat use. The iChat datum, even if true, is meaningless without other info, which neither Cringely nor AI have.

[ascii]

Some of Cringely's interviews are good, but when it comes to rumors or gossip he is very often off the mark. I must say I don't give this report much weight at all.

[kresh]

Do you always want to bury your head in the sand when you don't want to see something? AppleInsider did not originate this article, it is reporting on the article. It is related to Apple, since there had to have been some sell off because investors live and breath this crap, thus it is relevant and appropriate.

I get it. AppleInsider should only post happy thoughts and articles, and if anyone in the world says anything about Apple you don't like it should just be ignored.

Kasper, please don't cave to this kind of group think pressure!

[bonbazar]

Stop publishing such irrelevant article!

[Robin Huber]

Cringely or cringe-worthy?

[Wiggin]

Or maybe the guy just took a vacation! I'm sure it took some transition time during which Steve would need to be in more frequent contact to make sure his duties were transferred to other employees. But once that is transferred, his need to be in constant contact would be reduced. Someone like Steve wouldn't just walk out the door and instantly be out of communcation. It takes time to make sure things are transferred properly.

[nagromme]

"Steve came online each day and remained there for hours and hours as you'd expect a Silicon Valley mogul to do."

I wouldn't expect ANYONE to keep that up during an entire intensive treatment/recovery period. Heck, I gave up IM almost entirely a couple months ago because I just "didn't feel like it," and I'm not even sick.

We already know this is a serious treatment/recovery period and a cause for concern. IM habits (reported from questionable sources, no less) don't add any real information to that.

Originally Posted by kresh

Do you always want to bury your head in the sand when you don't want to see something? AppleInsider did not originate this article, it is reporting on the article. It is related to Apple, since there had to have been some sell off because investors live and breath this crap, thus it is relevant and appropriate.

I get it. AppleInsider should only post happy thoughts and articles, and if anyone in the world says anything about Apple you don't like it should just be ignored.

Kasper, please don't cave to this kind of group think pressure!

Avoid the group-think that makes you assume people aren't willing to hear anything bad about Apple There are all kinds on here of course, anti-Apple zealots and pro-Apple folks who annoyingly live on the bright side. But for the most part, you'll find that people on this site criticize POSITIVE rumors vehemently too. The criticism, in both cases, is legitimate when based on the quality of the source and the info. In this case, a questionable unknown source is relaying info that has no clear relevance. In short, the article is "someone MAY have said that Steve Jobs MAY be using IM less recently." That's little to do with anything beyond that, and that makes it not much of a story. Worth a mention, since it's a rumor after all, but I do expect people to discuss the quality of rumors. That's pretty important in fact.

[Ted13]

Originally Posted by astrosmash

I think Apple's handling of Steve's current health issues is suspicious to say the least. To frame it as simply a privacy issue is rather ridiculous; Apple executives know as well as anyone that any word of Jobs leaving Apple would cause a huge hit to their stock value (even though the company would be just fine either way). Clearly, the situation is such that they can't risk being transparent about it.

So if Jobs logs into chat less and less until he's not on at all, that's at least interesting. Cringely isn't suggesting anything more than that. He's not suggesting that Jobs is too ill to log into his computer, just that he's not using his compute...

Cringely never says that Jobs is "too ill" but clearly implies it. The subtext practically screams it.

So far as Apple hiding Jobs' health status because they are afraid that the stock will take a hit -- that's just absurd, they'd have to be insane. Forget about the consequences about lying about something like this when it comes to a public company, not to mention one that the SEC is already paying close attention to -- but Jobs not returning is already priced in to Apple's stock. In the medium term, Apple would probably be better off if they announced Jobs' retirement because it would force investors to look at Apple's VERY strong fundamentals and low P/E ratio and stop trading on gossip and rumors.

IMO, the most likely reason Apple is keeping mum is the most obvious one -- no one knows exactly what's wrong with Jobs including his doctors, and Jobs has absolutely vetoed the publication of daily medical bulletins -- and who could blame him.

[min_t]

And the reason why the story came out Saturday is not because the shareholders meeting is on Wednesday, right? Riiiight. Way to stoke the fire for hits, Mr Cringely. You sir got class.

[SpamSandwich]

It seems to me the market has already "priced in" the chance that Jobs may never return to Apple. The more pertinent question is, what is Apple going to do going forward, and are they delaying new product introductions (iMac, Mac mini) because of Steve's absence?

[brlawyer]

What a ridiculous gossip from someone that hasn't had one "right" for many years now...AI, you may please take it down, because it doesn't deserve space or pagehits at all..

To put it another way: The guy is being LESS NERDY and using less computers; so now THIS means he is in worse health? Go figure...and STFU, Cringely...SJ's no immortal anyway...

[hobBIT]

Originally Posted by Ted13

it would force investors to look at Apple's VERY strong fundamentals and low P/E ratio and stop trading on gossip and rumors.

I think you're wrong there. Stock prices rarely reflect what is, but rather reflect expectations of what will be.

With Jobs gone the expectation at best would be 'let's hope it continues as is' but more likely people will be hesitant assuming that without Jobs' input new ideas will become rarer and not as spot on and Apple will slowly lose its edge. With that expectation stock prices will dive - regardless of current fundamentals.

[Xian Zhu Xuande]

Originally Posted by HyteProsector

Woah Woah Woah, what is this a democracy? I hate to break it to ya, but AI is a privately owned website. Whats with all this "we" stuff? Kasper's got freedom of press here. I understand that some people might not like the content (myself included) but asking someone to relinquish their First Amendment Rights is pretty ballsy there guy.

I would never advocate dictating what should or should not be done with this site as was done by the previous poster, but the point here, and in a few other similar articles, is that this sort of story is so completely out there, and so meaningless, that it is just depressing to see as someone who really knows something about Apple. And for a true Apple site maintained by someone who surely knows Apple inside and out to be propagating filth like this is pretty bad.

I think all of us want to see real and meaningful articles. They're the reason why I have an account here. But these off-the-wall analyst attempts at, what, market manipulation? If I'm going to hear about them I'd prefer for it to be in the context of a market watch update of some sort, not reported as actual news.

That said, I was very happy to see that Kasper is taking this concern into consideration.

[Ted13]

Originally Posted by hobBIT

I think you're wrong there. Stock prices rarely reflect what is, but rather reflect expectations of what will be.

With Jobs gone the expectation at best would be 'let's hope it continues as is' but more likely people will be hesitant assuming that without Jobs' input new ideas will become rarer and not as spot on and Apple will slowly lose its edge. With that expectation stock prices will dive - regardless of current fundamentals.

Oh I certainly do have Apple future performance in mind. As one example, Amazon is currently trading at something like 40x P/E, Apple at 10x P/E (and Amazon doesn't have Apple's huge deferred income or cash stack).

Investors will have to ask themselves: is Jeff Bezos worth 4X Tim Cook and the rest of the Apple team? What happens when Apple release a Kindle killer (one that doesn't look/feel bad and has a touch screen instead of the useless keyboard)? What happens when iPhone 3 is released this summer for $99 and with a major upgrade of the iPhone OS X and is a big hit? A super sexy iTablet priced like a netbook?

You do realize that without Jobs killing stuff, Apple is likely to release more rather than fewer products?

[Mr Underhill]

It's funny you know i didn't answer any calls at the weekend or even go online either. No instead i spent a sunny weekend in the garden, with my family which is a much healthier option don't you think.

[astrosmash]

Originally Posted by Ted13

IMO, the most likely reason Apple is keeping mum is the most obvious one -- no one knows exactly what's wrong with Jobs including his doctors, and Jobs has absolutely vetoed the publication of daily medical bulletins -- and who could blame him.

Of course they don't know; there's uncertainly in any medical procedure. Nobody expects Apple to issue daily updates on Jobs' health, but the whole "Steve Jobs' health is a private issue and is not open for discussion" is nothing more than Apple trying to control this situation the best they can, and it's very surprising how many people bought into that angle (or maybe it's not that surprising)

If you don't like the way Cringely reported this info, then how would *you* have reported it? If you don't think he should have reported it, then I don't think you understand the situation very well.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by CU10

Leave him be.

You should do a "Leave Britney alone!" video about Steve Jobs.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHmvkRoEowc

(I always forget if that is a guy or a girl)

[jdavy]

Originally Posted by MacTel

Let's stick to rumors on Apple and not an individual's personal health matters. This should not AI's type of reporting.

I beg to differ on this. Apple is not the same company as it is when Steve is at the helm. He is likely the only CEO that is so tied to his company that he appears to be the company. I would like to think that Apple would be just fine without him but hey what has apple done in his absence? New products are none. Snow Leopard is still not released. And what about the leaks. A photo of an employee working at Apple. A video of the supposed new mac mini? These things would not happen under SJs' watch. At least they have not made anything dumb like a toaster. Like most here I pray for the recovery of SJ if only for the sake of our blessed ipods, iphones, macs and such. The day he passes away, tomorrow or years from now will be a black day for Apple, computers and innovation. :-(

[Ted13]

Originally Posted by astrosmash

If you don't like the way Cringely reported this info, then how would *you* have reported it? If you don't think he should have reported it, then I don't think you understand the situation very well.

I would have waited until I had something more to report than Steve Jobs' change in iChat habits, which *in and of itself* tells us nothing. If Cringely or any other journalist hears from two trusted, independent sources, known to be in a position to know and without axes to grind, that Jobs is gravely ill, or not expected to ever return to Apple, or has finally been diagnosed or..., then by all means I would report it, with a big fat headline. But Cringely has *NOTHING* -- the iChat business may be as simple as Mrs. Jobs telling Steve to cut it out for the full six months.

Note, I know less than nothing -- Jobs may be on his deathbed or on the road to a full recovery and 20 more years as Apple CEO, or somewhere in between. But in actual fact, that's exactly how much Cringely knows too, based on his article.

Until someone prints an article about Steve Jobs' actual health, based on facts, not speculation, they should stop gossiping if they value their reputation. I *like* Cringely. I am a long time, regular reader. I don't mind when he prints fanciful stuff. But when he is predicting that IBMs stock is going to tank as he did, incorrectly, over the last couple of years, at least he is speculating about an inanimate object. Steve Jobs is a real live human and deserves more substantial reporting.

[NeilM]

...the book, published in 1996, in which Cringely predicted PCs would be "obsolete" by the year 2000 and "only software would survive."

Which is why I stopped reading Cringely years ago. He's usually entertaining but almost never right about anything, and this latest story changes nothing. Well, except that it's not even entertaining.

Life's too short to pay attention to this stuff.

[Daniel B]

Originally Posted by TheNipponese

You know, I just want to say your attack on Cringely is kinda fucked up. The man has been in the game for a lot long than any of us, and even had a relationship with Jobs and Apple when it was still a garage operation. I understand the need for objectivity, but this is a little over the top. Btw, his Triumph of The Nerds is an amazing doc so show some respect.

If Cringlely was really a friend of Jobs, he should have kept this to himself. In any case, I guess he's off Jobs' buddy list now.

I hope Papa Steve is somewhere in the Caribbean, learning to kiteboard, or something. Better yet, deeply focused on getting the tablet finished.

Regarding if AI should run this. I think they should - it's something that's out there and affecting Apple. However, AI could have put a different spin on it, showing their disproval.

Best,

Daniel

[sflocal]

Hey Kasper, you're lowering yourself to the level of tabloid fodder. You seem to be hearing the general consensus but not paying attention really.

Stop this rumor-mongering. Unless there is bonafide fact to support anything about Jobs, you're contributing to the "let's pull a rumor out of my a** and see who jumps" mentality.

As far as I'm concerned, Jobs is taking a seriously long overdue sabbatical. People here somehow expect Jobs to be in front of a computer during every waking moment?

Take this article down!

[JimDreamworx]

If the only contact Jobs has with this "friend" is via online communication, how much of a friend is this person really?

Reminds me of Facebook friends, and an article that I read awhile back that stated if a person will not lend you money, then they are not really a friend.

If not being online is a crime for people involved in the computer industry, especially those at the top, maybe everyone should be forced to use Twitter at the expense of the corporation and it should be regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission to constantly make presence known to shareholder. I can only begin to imagine the human rights issues if such an idea seriously was considered.

AppleInsider is free to publish this, but should have been more op-ed in this piece making statements about Cringley and his ancestry (ie. son of a bitch.)

[hiimamac]

Originally Posted by BlackSummerNight

The man is on his death bed, so forgive him if he doesn't have time to chat.

What happened to all the "we'' see him in June" people?

I think the select few of us, while wishing Jobs well, knew that he was indeed, sick or not feeling well.

The rumor sites had all these predictions for Macworld, normally, they would be off by a few things, this time, they were ALL off 100%, this means, Apple at the last minute, pulled the product, took Steve out of the loop, and will plan to release new products between now and then showing the people they don't need Jobs. Truth of the matter though is that this was by design and by Jobs himself. I'm sure we still have those predictions threads bookmarked, but anyone that thought otherwise, (that Jobs was okay), has no clue.

Hope he gets well - but you have to wonder, a lot of products need refresh. The iPhone needs flash and while Apple blames Adobe, further research shows that Apple is hampering Adobe as they fear the introduction of Adobe applications. At the same time, the iPhone has millions of users about to turn two years old on their contracts (June) and many newer phones will have FLASH and TETHERING - additionally, there is no sub mid range head machine. The mini looks like it will have firewire but will it have dedicated GPU, if so, will it be crippled by slower CPU?

Not sure about everyone here but in some respect, if and when Jobs steps down for good, I think the marketing department will have more headway and won't be afraid of introducing products that the people want instead of releasing products that are crippled (macbook, newer GPU, no firewire), and start releasing products that get the job done without having to spends a few thousand dollars in order to get a $3.00 part.

[Virgil-TB2]

After being so totally wrong so many times, you'd think that you'd just give up posting your predictions here.

Originally Posted by hiimamac

... I think the select few of us, while wishing Jobs well, knew that he was indeed, sick or not feeling well. ... they were ALL off 100%, this means, Apple at the last minute, pulled the product, took Steve out of the loop, and will plan to release new products ... Truth of the matter though is that this was by design and by Jobs himself. ... anyone that thought otherwise, (that Jobs was okay), has no clue. ... The iPhone needs flash and while Apple blames Adobe, further research shows that Apple is hampering Adobe as they fear the introduction of Adobe applications. ... additionally, there is no sub mid range head machine. ...

In case you haven't noticed, you are in disagreement with the majority on pretty much all of these statements, yet you frame each and every one of them as something that "everyone knows" or "it's a fact that" etc. I think you must be a (not especially gifted) teenager or something. Most people know how to write better and construct a proper argument before they leave High School.

This one takes the cake though.

It makes me think you are just pretending to be a dimwit for fun, as a sort of forum "character."

Originally Posted by hiimamac

... if and when Jobs steps down for good, I think the marketing department will have more headway and won't be afraid of introducing products that the people want instead of releasing products that are crippled (macbook, newer GPU, no firewire), and start releasing products that get the job done without having to spends a few thousand dollars in order to get a $3.00 part. ...

Apple's business model is one of the best out there. One of the main reasons being their spectacular margins, yet you are advocating that they swallow some of that margin to produce products in a price range you like?

Apple's design chops are second to none, yet you are suggesting they use inferior materials or cheaper designs so as to produce products that *you* find acceptable and again, in a price range you like.

Apple's customer satisfaction ratings are through the roof, and again, second to none in their end of the business, but you are suggesting that there are so many people out there (like you) that are so dissatisfied that Apple should change everything around again to focus on "what people (in other words just you) really want."

I don't think LOL or even ROFL even begins to cover the reaction to this comment.
These are stunningly dumb ideas. Comically so.

[neondiet]

If a friend of mine didn't login for a couple of weeks, my first thought would be that he's gone on holiday, not that he's on his death bed. Steve's rich and has lots of rich friends. Maybe, just maybe he on a private little island somewhere, or perhaps on a yacht catching some nice healthy sea air and sunshine.

Then again, I don't have the rep of a storm crow to live up to!

[bigpics]

Originally Posted by Virgil-TB2

He said "obsolete" so he is off by more than a decade, since the decade has all but passed already and we are actually at the very *beginning* of this process. The PC industry lives on hype and unbridled Futurism true, but Cringley was still wrong, and by at least two decades, possibly three.

Since when he said that it was the 90's, this means he was off by something like a factor of four to six. Something taking four to six times longer than your prediction, is pretty bad by any standard.

I never meant to defend the cringing one, but was simply moved off the article topic by knowing we're well past the "very *beginning* of this process" already.

traditional corded PC's (outside of the workplace and serious power users) are in fact in precipitous decline, notebooks have passed their zenith - and any OS that gets you on the net (THE software of the near future), or simply fetches media and other info from (and to) the net (and other cabled and FIOS'ed and cell-towered, satellited, Wi-fied and Wimaxed connections to other clouds) with a minimum of fuss will do for most people's computing needs. even if Apple does it with more dash and panache.

today.

expect new metrics (though many close to this may already exist) about the mind and market share of all digital devices (PC's, luggables, briefcaseables, pocketables, media servers, DVR's, cameras, picture frames, dialables, txtables, Skypeables, GPS's and many more to come) with which people receive, create, modify, save and transmit bits - and anyone will be able see how far this revolution's already come.

so my difference with you is that I estimate we're more approaching the end of this beginning and the tide has already shifted perceptibly, the big waves already starting to crash on the shore and King PC already very shaky on its throne of ruling the world's personal computing domain.

don't forget the pace of change in technology (the "delta of change") is also itself changing and becoming faster.

but enough of that here. and again, all best wishes to Msr. Jobs and family.

[CU10]

Originally Posted by solipsism

You should do a "Leave Britney alone!" video about Steve Jobs.

LOL. No doubt it'll be huge.

AI must be on to something here.

[Virgil-TB2]

Originally Posted by bigpics

I never meant to defend the cringing one, but was simply moved off the article topic by knowing we're well past the "very *beginning* of this process" already.

traditional corded PC's (outside of the workplace and serious power users) are in fact in precipitous decline, notebooks have passed their zenith - and any OS that gets you on the net (THE software of the near future), or simply fetches media and other info from (and to) the net (and other cabled and FIOS'ed and cell-towered, satellited, Wi-fied and Wimaxed connections to other clouds) with a minimum of fuss will do for most people's computing needs. even if Apple does it with more dash and panache....

Granted this is off topic anyway and we both agree that Cringley is a bit of a duffus, but I to explain myself better, I would argue that we would have to get "OS agnostic" and "device agnostic" before his prediction is actually true, which is why I said it's "beginning now" and possibly another 10 to 20 years before we get there.

So in my way of looking at it a laptop is still a "PC," and his vision isn't complete until I can use my TV, my bathroom mirror, or my neighbours car to get the same job done, so I can understand why you don't agree with me there.

[wilco]

Wahhh!

Take down this article, it's too upsetting to me!

[dacloo]

For god sakes, leave the man alone. Let him rest.

[solipsism]

LEAVE
STEVE JOBS
ALONE!!!!!