An ode to Steve Jobs and the keynote
Steve Jobs changed the technology keynote, how to enjoy these events without expecting the unrealistic.
One of the staples of Steve Job’s Apple reign was the technology keynote. His unique personality was one of the hallmarks of the technology landscape for years. The bombastic nature of his leadership combined with the eye he had in multiples spheres of business made him the man that we look back on as one that changed the world and the technology landscape forever.
It seems that most will remember Jobs as being the man that invented the iPhone or the Macintosh. Personally, I’ll remember Jobs as the man that revolutionized the technology keynote. For me, these events used to be boring and far too scripted. They were dressed up PR events that felt unneeded and, frankly, a waste of time.
When I first watch Steve do his thing in the mid-2000s I was blown away and captivated. He’s forever one of the people that I’ll look up too for his creative eye, drive, and intensity. Jobs captured my attention and stoked my passion for technology in ways that I didn’t see possible.
Steve Jobs was able to get me excited for CPU, storage, AI, pixels and so much more that I wouldn’t have cared about until I saw someone else get excited about them. Watching Jobs present the fruits of his and his team’s labor year after year with a unique passion and vigor was addicting. Before long, I realized Apple events were a must-watch in my life.
Not long after that, I was on YouTube scouring old videos of any keynote that Jobs was apart of. It was amazing to see someone’s passion go unchanged over decades. I’ll always remember Steve for the man that changed how a company could present it’s products. Many will remember Steve as a pompous leader that let his flaw’s define him, not me.
Fast forward to today. Apple events still always one of the best tech events of the year. Microsoft’s Surface and other events like it are really fun, but the best events have always been Apple’s.
This year’s event is a big one for Apple. It’s the ten year anniversary of the original iPhone that Jobs and Apple released. So, of course, given that we expect greatness from every device Apple breathes, the tenth anniversary of the iPhone suddenly means that Apple has to present something revolutionary.
Even though I’m not sure what else can be done to the smart phone in the physically limiting package it currently resides. That doesn’t change the reality that hardcore fans of Apple are expecting something great.
I suppose the high expectations arise from Apple’s propensity for coming up with something that people don’t even know they wanted. Steve Jobs always talked about consumers not knowing what they really wanted, until Apple told them what they wanted.
What this seems to come down to is that everyone wants Apple to invent the next best thing, explain to them why the need it, and sell it to them in a gorgeous device that combines beautiful hardware and simplistic software.
What I’ve found is that going into technology presentations of any kind featuring any company, with expectations of a device that will revolutionize the business landscape is a selling these events short. As a technology enthusiast I truly believe that to fully enjoy these events we have to watch what’s behind the device as much as we watch the device itself.
The people presenting these devices are just as fascinating as the device itself. Even if there’s a “dud” device, that shouldn’t take away from how and why the creators of the device made the choices they did. When it comes to really enjoying the best companies and their keynotes, I think it comes down to being in or watching with a group of people that have such a shared passion and interest in technology. It really is just like a great soccer match or basketball game, the fans of that team or sport get together and have a good time sharing in an interest. Technology keynotes can and are that for those of us that love technology. So let’s enjoy technology keynotes, regardless of the technology that comes out of it.
