So Steve Jobs is dead.

The original Apple computer did so much to open up computing, making it accessible to ordinary people through an intuitive interface.

I used Apple ][ computers from the mid 80s, and even had one at home for a few years. Moving to British Biotech in 1990, I found Macintoshes everywhere, and with no training, was designing new laboratories to scale using Macdraw. By comparison PCs were truly terrible, and even the early windows operating system was a bit of a tram-smash.

I was an apple fan and proud of it.

16 years later I came back to Apple expecting wonderful things, only to find that they had become the 'evil empire'. I'd like to believe that it was Job's illness that made him guide Apple the way he did, but I suspect it was his status as a demi-god of computing together with an inability of people to be honest to him that made Apple turn out the way it has.

Thanks for the Apple computer, Steve. It brought out the best in you and the worst in you.

Interesting biog here on the Register that brings a bit more insight into the man's character and background.