384 pages
Published April 29, 2014 by Debate.
Draws on more than forty interviews with Steve Jobs, as well as interviews with family members, friends, competitors, and colleagues, to offer a look at the co-founder and leading creative force behind the Apple computer company.
This biography shares the life and personality of a creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.
It isn't a page-turner, with its frequent time jumps requiring close attention to dates, but it deepened my appreciation for Apple's history, inspired me to re-watch Jobs' presentations, discover cool YouTube channels about vintage Apple hardware, and reminded me of the importance of focus—something I struggle with.
This was supposed to be the definite biography of Steve Jobs but somehow it feels like it barely scratched the surface.
I don't like Steve Jobs, but this is a wonderful glimpse at the beginnings of silicon valley. I do respect him though for what he achieved, plus I never knew his involvement with Pixar.
It was a good lecture. Many things which I had read about him on the Internet make sense now.
Doskonała książka do poznania Jobsa. Tylko tyle i aż tyle. Dobra ksiażka. Świetna kronika.
Cóż więcej można dodać?
More flattering than what I like, but there was so many interesting point in Steve's/Apple's life that in the end the book is good.
Read the first few chapters, and after a while I couldn't continue. It felt boring and repetitive... too much hype? Well, most of this information was known to me before; even from several older books. I tried to listen to the audiobook to overcome this issue, but again didn't finish. Although his life is interesting... it might be a worthwhile book to read to you, but when you have heard his life story before you will not find anything new. And for the tech background, there are better books available about the Macintosh or the Pixar story.
Marking it finished even though I didn't. The book offers a good insight in Steve Jobs's life and thoughts, but at a certain point it became boring to read the same things over and over again so I quit.
Sometimes, the distance between the author and the subject is a little lacking. Also, whilst one learns a good deal about external factors, it still does only a raw job at explaining the way his mind worked.
Steve Jobs had a huge impact on the computer and animation industries, and mr. Walter does a good job of describing what he did, but there's not much about how. I guess, as someone who is part of this industry, I am interested in topics that the book does not try to cover.
There's very little about management practices or theory, and since Steve was an entrepreneur and built the most valuable company ever, a little bit more focus on these areas would be good. The book goes on and on about how Steve loves product, and built products, and designed products, but not properly describing the process.
Still, as a biography, it's impossible to cover everything, and I would forgive this if Walter did not end the book as a Steve-fanboy. Maybe his Reality Distortion Field got Walter, but some of the superlatives went too far. I can agree …
Steve Jobs had a huge impact on the computer and animation industries, and mr. Walter does a good job of describing what he did, but there's not much about how. I guess, as someone who is part of this industry, I am interested in topics that the book does not try to cover.
There's very little about management practices or theory, and since Steve was an entrepreneur and built the most valuable company ever, a little bit more focus on these areas would be good. The book goes on and on about how Steve loves product, and built products, and designed products, but not properly describing the process.
Still, as a biography, it's impossible to cover everything, and I would forgive this if Walter did not end the book as a Steve-fanboy. Maybe his Reality Distortion Field got Walter, but some of the superlatives went too far. I can agree that Steve molded the personal computer industry and changed the music forever, but to say that he revolutionized books, television, games, etc... it was too much.
Still, the characterization of Steve's bad parts is laudable, complete, and entertaining. His many flaws are fully portrayed, and I imagine it took Walter a lot of diplomacy to get them on print.
It's interesting to compare this biography of Steve Jobs with the previous book I read, In The Plex which is essentially a biography of Google. While the drive at Google seems to be rigorous intellectual pursuits of the impossible, the drive at Apple was the pursuit of perfection.
And this book is as much about Apple as it is about Steve Jobs. While it does cover his personal life, there really isn't that much of it. Jobs, by his own admission spent less time on his children than he did on his work.
Isaacson does a good job of portraying both the brilliant drive that Jobs had and also his remarkably bratty personal side. From his earliest years he appears to have been convinced that he was simply cleverer and more important than everyone else. His actions were consistently selfish and inconsiderate of all around him. As a human being …
It's interesting to compare this biography of Steve Jobs with the previous book I read, In The Plex which is essentially a biography of Google. While the drive at Google seems to be rigorous intellectual pursuits of the impossible, the drive at Apple was the pursuit of perfection.
And this book is as much about Apple as it is about Steve Jobs. While it does cover his personal life, there really isn't that much of it. Jobs, by his own admission spent less time on his children than he did on his work.
Isaacson does a good job of portraying both the brilliant drive that Jobs had and also his remarkably bratty personal side. From his earliest years he appears to have been convinced that he was simply cleverer and more important than everyone else. His actions were consistently selfish and inconsiderate of all around him. As a human being he fails again and again.
And yet. His accomplishments can't be ignored. They are many and remarkable. His obsession with perfection resulted in products that no one else will likely ever replicate.
I was already familiar with his early years at Apple, but the inside perspectives on the alter years were interesting and showed that it wasn't really maturing that allowed Jobs to hit his creative peak with the iPhone and iPad, but rather the fact that he finally surrounded himself with a group of people who were both equally talented in their own areas of expertise, not overwhelmed by Jobs and able to get a little respect out of him.
In the end it's a sad story. His own hubris and refusal to accept reality (traits that had served him well over the years) were his final undoing.
Thanks, Walter Isaacson, for portraying Steven Jobs not as a hero but as a man with many follies and quirks but also painting his genius wonderfully. It was a refreshing read about one of the best artist-technologist of our era. I highly recommend this book.
This is a very well written biography of a remarkable, not always likeable man who changed the face of modern technology. I think the author does a great job of trying to honestly represent Jobs, flaws and all, and manages to end up with a detailed and reasonably unbiased portrait that allows the reader to draw their own conclusions about the man. Those who are already very familiar with Apple's and Steve Jobs' history may find parts of it are no surprise, and those looking for in depth technology analysis will be disappointed, but as a personal portrait of this unique man and his accomplishments this is well worth reading. I particularly found that the recounting of the continuing relationship between Jobs and Bill Gates was fascinating. Highly recommended.
An unexceptional book about an exceptional person who left behind these lessons.
Single-mindedly following your intuition only work if you are right.
Intuition and a forceful personality are handy, but without training you can't really make good decisions.
If you are always right, you can go far on your own. But if you are average, you will fail without the help and support of others.
You, reader, can surpass Steve Jobs in some important areas. You can take more care with your family and friends. And you can take better care of yourself.
A powerful look at the greatest entrepreneur of our generation.
