Some of the devices that made Apple and Steve Jobs famous

When something truly momentous or especially sad happens in the technology industry I often go back to my former boss and mentor Michael J. Miller, long-time editor of PC Magazine in its heyday.
It is seldom worth it to call and interview Michael because he is so prolific, despite no longer being an editor or even in the publishing world full time anymore.
True to form he did not disappoint this morning, having already having posted his Forward Thinking column/blog that covered many of his own thoughts and memories of Steve Jobs and the technology he helped create.
In the piece there are some links back to other stories and columns where he discusses Apple and Jobs as well that will be of interest to computer history buffs.
I thought I’d excerpt a few key thoughts of his and interweave them with some images I remembered seeing on the Computer History Museum’s website and its excellent Revolution exhibit related specifically to Apple’s early days:

“…what stands out to me is how Jobs was able to see the technology and the trends that were around and combine them in ways others could not. He often fused technology, industrial design, and software that was advanced but appeared simple, producing products that changed the way we work, live, and connect.”

…“I can still remember the day Steve Jobs showed me that first Mac in a small conference room on the Apple campus in Cupertino. Even then, he was convinced it would change the way people work. He never let the machine’s early limitations—which he well knew—get in the way of his vision of computing. He was right, even though it would be years until most computer users worked that way…” –Michael Miller

…”Again, Jobs and Apple didn’t create the portable digital music player; a variety of smaller companies had products in the market long before the Apple had the iPod. Jobs looked beyond the mere hardware and combined a small, well-designed music player, software that made it easy to transfer music onto the device, and a single online store that let you legally obtain content. He created an ecosystem that forever changed the music business.”…-Michael Miller