Bill Gates not bothered by Steve Jobs's comments in biography
Responding to unflattering comments made about him in Apple co-founder Steve Jobs's new biography, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said he's not bothered by the remarks.
The book "Steve Jobs" by author Walter Isaacson, released last week, includes comments from both Jobs and Gates about one another. While Gates said he found Jobs to be a "weirdly flawed human being," Jobs asserted that Gates was a "basically unimaginative" person who "never invented anything... He just shamelessly ripped off other people's ideas."
Upon hearing those comments, Gates spoke with ABC's This Week, and said he was not bothered by negative remarks made by Jobs. He admitted that Jobs said "a lot of very nice things about him," in addition to "a lot of tough things."
"We got to work together," Gates said. "We spurred each other on, even as competitors. None of that bothers me at all."
The Microsoft chairman said Jobs felt as though he was the "good guy" and Microsoft "were the bad guys." Gates said it was "understandable" why Jobs might feel that way.
"He faced, several times at Apple, the fact that their products were so premium priced that they literally might not stay in the marketplace," he said. "So the fact that we were succeeding with high volume products, you know, including a range of prices, because of the way we worked with multiple companies -- it's tough."
Isaacson's book -- which is now available in hardcover, on Apple's iBooks, and Amazon Kindle -- describes a number of confrontations between Gates and Jobs over the years. The book states that as Jobs would become emotional and angry, Gates had an opposite reaction and actually calmed down.
"I'm good when people are emotional -- I'm kind of less emotional," Gates was quoted as saying.
The book "Steve Jobs" by author Walter Isaacson, released last week, includes comments from both Jobs and Gates about one another. While Gates said he found Jobs to be a "weirdly flawed human being," Jobs asserted that Gates was a "basically unimaginative" person who "never invented anything... He just shamelessly ripped off other people's ideas."
Upon hearing those comments, Gates spoke with ABC's This Week, and said he was not bothered by negative remarks made by Jobs. He admitted that Jobs said "a lot of very nice things about him," in addition to "a lot of tough things."
"We got to work together," Gates said. "We spurred each other on, even as competitors. None of that bothers me at all."
The Microsoft chairman said Jobs felt as though he was the "good guy" and Microsoft "were the bad guys." Gates said it was "understandable" why Jobs might feel that way.
"He faced, several times at Apple, the fact that their products were so premium priced that they literally might not stay in the marketplace," he said. "So the fact that we were succeeding with high volume products, you know, including a range of prices, because of the way we worked with multiple companies -- it's tough."
Isaacson's book -- which is now available in hardcover, on Apple's iBooks, and Amazon Kindle -- describes a number of confrontations between Gates and Jobs over the years. The book states that as Jobs would become emotional and angry, Gates had an opposite reaction and actually calmed down.
"I'm good when people are emotional -- I'm kind of less emotional," Gates was quoted as saying.
Comments
Responding to unflattering comments made about him in Apple co-founder Steve Jobs's new biography, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said he's not bothered by the remarks.
Whew! That's a relief.
he was also a bespectacled asshole of a little nerd with a bad haircut
mmm
i had a boss once where i used to sell pc's in a small shop... when a customer would come in complaining and shouting his head off... my boss would remain calm and mellow with a wry smile on his face - it was an unnerving quality.
he was also a bespectacled asshole of a little nerd with a bad haircut
mmm
strewth, give the guy a break, jobs is dead, no need to be insulting about his appearance
For all the things he did as part of Microsoft that I don't agree with, Bill Gates in his later years has grown into one heck of a human being.
Wait a minute.... did Jobs invent or design anything at Apple? I thought he had inventors and designers to do that, and then bought lots of startups and companies to incorporate their ideas into his product line.... kind of like Microsoft did....
None of those products would exist without Steve Jobs.
While he did not personally sit down in a chair, design, build, test, and produce the iPad, for example, he played an integral role in making the iPad what it is today. Same goes for the iPhone, the Mac, digital music, and plenty of other things. It is easy enough to sit back and attempt to diminish his accomplishments by saying 'Really, did he invent anything?' but the fact is, he is the reason why so much has been invented—he has contributed so much to the aesthetic, ease-of-use, and functionality of technology as it is today—and that's quite amazing. His contribution can be commended as surely as Henry Ford's to the automobile.
He had the chance to have the last word, and he let it go.
It shows maturity and probably a great deal of self-awareness.
Kinda like this bill gates guy nowadays
Wait a minute.... did Jobs invent or design anything at Apple? I thought he had inventors and designers to do that, and then bought lots of startups and companies to incorporate their ideas into his product line.... kind of like Microsoft did....
Do great conductors matter? All the players in a symphony orchestra actually make the music, don't they. I could stand in front of them and be the human metronome, right? And the Berlin Philharmonic would sound just as good under my baton as any other fool, right?
This analogy breaks down in Steve's case because in a sense although he didn't make the music, he often wrote it. Call him: conductor/composer.
Get over it, detractors. Steve mattered. He mattered a lot.
Responding to unflattering comments made about him in Apple co-founder Steve Jobs's new biography, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said he's not bothered by the remarks.
Between the two of them, Gates has always been the "bigger man".
What did you expect him to say? I think Bill took the high road on this one. If he acted even the least bit defensive, Apple-centric sites (and their readership) would rip him a new one for being callous in the wake of Jobs' death.
They are going to regardless. Although I do understand why Jobs felt slighted by the chaps at Microsoft, and more recently Google, the fact that his insults to Gates et al. keep coming up makes it seem as if he never moved on. They seemed to get on quite well at All Things D those years back.
strewth, give the guy a break, jobs is dead, no need to be insulting about his appearance
I think he meant Bill...
Between the two of them, Gates has always been the "bigger man".
Gates is unemotional and practical. Nothing wrong with that either. Still, he must accept the blame for hiring Ballmer.
Very classy, and I'm definitely a fan of post-MS Bill Gates. Impressive human.
How satisfying that must feel, to him.