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Wozniak Interview In Failure

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the good-stuff-here-people dept.

Plastickiwi writes "The current issue of the online magazine Failure features an interview with Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak. Woz waxes humble about his role in founding the microcomputer revolution, claims there's no bad blood between himself and Steve Jobs, and weighs in on the Microsoft antitrust trial." Tons of interesting stuff: he also talks about Pirates of the Silicon Valley and other bits. As always, Woz is a joy to read.

3 of 155 comments (clear)

  1. Woz as an engineer by Veteran · · Score: 5
    Anyone who today thinks that they are a hot shot digital designer is invited to try duplicating what Woz did back in the seventies.

    What makes his work exceptional is that there were no simulators available for modeling computer behavior; he and the other designers of the era had to SIMULATE THE ENTIRE COMPUTER IN THEIR HEADS. That is a very rare talent.

    While there are many people today who can do digital designs, the available tools are much better than they were just 25 years ago. To find out how good Woz was you would have to use the same tools he had - with the same low level TTL chips, a 'hock your calculator' R & D budget to work with, and do your work in a garage.

    Great work Steve, thanks.

  2. Dead already by FascDot+Killed+My+Pr · · Score: 5

    Well, I guess "Failure" magazine is aptly named. Goodbye server. I'll just have to stay here with the other slowpokes and make humorous/offtopic remarks.

    "...claims there's no bad blood between himself and Steve Jobs..."

    Probably because neither of them uses blood. Woz is clearly an advanced AI left here by aliens while Jobs probably upgraded from blood to a secret liquid compound that speeds his "boot time" in the morning from 10 minutes to an insanely great 5 seconds.
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  3. Woz a better writer than Jobs... by yakfacts · · Score: 5

    I had never read any of "The Woz"'s writing before, and it is nice that he does not have the "look at me, I am wonderful" problems of Steve Jobs. To listen to SJ, one would think that he--with some technical assistance from SW--created the microcomputer. SW is a lot more accurate.

    Also nice was the mention of Mike Markkula, but like most stories of the founding of Apple no mention is made of the role of Nolan Bushnell.

    I was very, very pleased to see mention of Atari engineeer Al Acorn in the article, however. If you know the full story on Atari--which SW does not cover--the complicated reasons for Bushnell's decision were what eventually brought the fall of Atari. Bad management from a ex-Burlington manager ran Atari into the ground, and a ex-Pepsi manager came inches from killing Apple. When will the technology industry realize that you can't have hi-tech industries run by people who don't understand them?

    Woz has his head on a lot straighter than most of the people in SV.