Jobs vs Gates

[Bub]

We have all been hearing the praise and affection for Steve Jobs since his death.
I am wondering if similar thoughts are felt for Bill Gates.
Visionary and genius are words that I have heard for Jobs and he has certainly changed the way we interact with computers and digital information.
However,he was a tyrant who amassed a large fortune and appeared to have little interest in philanthropy.
Microsoft, on the other hand, has products that more people use but don't feel as passionate about as Apple products.
Gates has also amassed a large fortune but he is actively involved in philanthropy.
Let me ask it this way...whose biography would you want to read?
My pick is Steve Job's

 

[puros_bran]

Jobs Inc painted a real good picture as Gates as THE BAD GUY.

I won't paint a dead man in to bad a light.. but.. A ton of Apple innovation was and is stuff they 'stole' from others too..
Who invented the smartphone? It wasn't Apple.
Who invented the home computer? It wasn't Apple
Who invented tablet computing? It wasn't Apple..
BUT If you listened to their marketing and their fanboys you would believe they did..
Jobs was a brilliant marketeer. Apple releases great products that are big on eyecandy and simplicity.

It's still cool to hate Microsoft.. and by default Bill Gates.
It's an unwarrented hatred. Have they released crap? Sure, but so has Apple, and every other tech company.

As to your question.. Will they be free in iBooks? If so yeah I'll read both of them... LMAO!!!

 

[Preacher]

I wouldn't read either. I'm not a fan of Apple. I don't think that Apple invented any of the things that they are credited for. I think that the one true gift of Jobs was that he was one heckuva marketter. I use PC's, but I'm not kissing Gate's butt either. All of these are companies that do what they do for one purpose: to make money. To treat them as anything more is lunacy!

 

[MisterE]

I like Bill Gates mostly because he is dedicated to philanthropy. Most of the people with that kind of wealth didn't get there by being "Mr. Nice Guy". I think all willingly had a hand in stealing someone else's efforts at some point in their careers. At least Gates has the conscience to give a little- even if his motive might only be to assuage his guilt. Who knows...

 

[Boulder]

I like Bill Gates mostly because he is dedicated to philanthropy. Most of the people with that kind of wealth didn't get there by being "Mr. Nice Guy". I think all willingly had a hand in stealing someone else's efforts at some point in their careers. At least Gates has the conscience to give a little- even if his motive might only be to assuage his guilt. Who knows...

Some would call it Tax write-off's

 

[puros_bran]

Hating on your fellow man simply because he is more successful than you??

 

[MisterE]

No hating here!

 

[puros_bran]

I was talking to Bolder (pun intended, sorry man but the bold type in every post for the entire post is over the top)

Gates appeared to have a fundamental change in his life outlook after getting out of the corporate world.

AND

Regardless of his motivation he has accomplished a lot of good.

 

[Kyle Weiss]

I didn't invent the chicken Cesar salad, but I'm told I make one of the best, including from-scratch dressing. I don't consider myself a "stealer of products."

It's hard to look in the face of a cultural/technological phenomenon, like any Apple products, and leaving criticism at "it wasn't original," or "the founder (Jobs) wasn't philanthropic enough." What we do with our ideas, products and money is our choice, and it might not make us look good in the eyes of political correctness, community or personally, but it's still our choice. Kind of nice we have that option where we live.

At the same time, we can also reap the criticism if we're not doing something.

Yet the public is, buying all of the stuff en masse. I'd say contributions and success are equal in both instances, Jobs/Gates, Apple/PC.

I'd rather read stories about present-day success being made at a start-up level, rather than a biography/autobiography about two dudes who were in the right place at the right time.

 

[puros_bran]

I would counter that the two dudes created the right place and the right time.
Their vision, their innovation, and their hard work has changed the world.
They didn't invent computing but they did make it accessible to you and I.

 

[Bub]

Kyle said

What we do with our ideas, products and money is our choice, and it might not make us look good in the eyes of political correctness, community or personally, but it's still our choice.

Luke said

For everyone to whom much is given, of him shall much be required

.

 

[thedeep]

If I recall correctly, Gates did not get into philanthropy until after being assailed, sued, etc...and being called because of his wealth. He was not always so generous. Also, there is a HUGE difference in the amount of wealth these two gentlemen have. Jobs, it appears, is worth about $6-7 billion, Gates..much, much more.

 

[puros_bran]

So the amount of money your hard work, vision, dedication, ability, etc creates is directly related to how 'evil' you are.. Got it.

 

[Kyle Weiss]

So the amount of money your hard work, vision, dedication, ability, etc creates is directly related to how 'evil' you are.. Got it.

*raises glass* Well then... here's to evil, and the pursuit therein. :twisted:

 

[Harlock999]

Gates wins by virtue of his ability to do a happy dance on Jobs' grave, if he were so inclined.

 

[Josjor]

Boy, lots to cover but I'll only make a few observations.

As mentioned already, both of them got to where the are by taking other peoples ideas. But what they did with those ideas is vastly different.

Jobs true gift was in perfecting an idea, polishing it to an incredible level, and simplifying it to be amazingly easy to use. Package it in very pleasing eye candy and market it well enough that you can sell it for over double the competitors price for a similar object. That is the perfection of the traditional "form follows function" idea and I don't believe anyone did it better.

Gates' abilities are more in the traditional corporate structure wherein you buy/borrow/steal/create an idea. Package it in a manner that allows you to sell it at a cost that encourages people to buy it in quantities that make it the most common platform. Then sell all the goods and programs that work on that platform. It is a very classic example of American corporate structure and planning.

If it comes down to judging one of them on creative merit, I would have to give the nod to Jobs. I would give Gates the nod for traditional business management. I have no real desire to read the biography of either one.

Philanthropy? Well, I guess you could argue that Gates gives back more, but I don't know Jobs giving tendencies. Gates has certainly done his best to make sure the public knows he gives away money. But I would also counter that Gates doesn't even notice that the money is gone from his account. It's not like he has to eat beans and weenies tonight because he gave a little more than usual this week.

I don't begrudge anyone making as much money as they would like and can do (as long as it's done legally and ethically........but that's a whole other thread in the case of Jobs and Gates!!!) but don't brag and show off how much money you've given away unless it was enough to cause some sort of hardship for you. And then I would still prefer that you keep it to yourself. As Jesus said about giving, don't let the right hand know what the left hand is doing.

I'm reminded of the story of the widow's mite.

 

[Hunter5117]

Guess I would have to be firmly in the camp that both made significant contributions in their own way. Apple was the first to bring to market a computer with built-in keyboard and video interface that could run software that "everyman" could use, rather than just running assembler or Basic programs. When Visicalc came out for the Apple, wow, now there was an application that could really make use of the computer's power for crunching numbers in a way that small company accountants and engineers could make use of. I have always felt that Visicalc made the Apple II the success that it was. Of course MS soon started bringing apps to PC's in the form of MS/PC-DOS and MS-Basic but it wasn't until the advent of Windows and really Windows 3.1 before Microsoft became a big player. In this case, you could argue that without IBM and the PC and all the clones that MS would never have gotten the traction and income from selling DOS that it needed to become the company that it is.

Job's real genius was his product vision and marketing. His insistence on not releasing products that were not "perfect", which in turn allowed Apple to keep product lines simple and only make major updates on an infrequent basis, providing a free development environment, invoking software standards (at least for app store apps), keeping legacy hardware useful and functional for a very long time frame, etc, etc has really given Apple a very unique position in all consumer goods, not just PC's. While they cost more, many Apple users keep their computers for 2 or 3 times the normal lifespan of other brands, making them IMHO sort of the Zippo or Stanley bottle of the PC business.

Regardless, I am sorry that Steve Jobs has passed away and feel the world is poorer after his passing.

 

[Bub]

In case your are wondering, Luke is an economist in the Obama administration.

 

[WaydeG]

I didn't invent the chicken Cesar salad, but I'm told I make one of the best, including from-scratch dressing. I don't consider myself a "stealer of products."

It's hard to look in the face of a cultural/technological phenomenon, like any Apple products, and leaving criticism at "it wasn't original," or "the founder (Jobs) wasn't philanthropic enough." What we do with our ideas, products and money is our choice, and it might not make us look good in the eyes of political correctness, community or personally, but it's still our choice. Kind of nice we have that option where we live.

At the same time, we can also reap the criticism if we're not doing something.

Yet the public is, buying all of the stuff en masse. I'd say contributions and success are equal in both instances, Jobs/Gates, Apple/PC.

I'd rather read stories about present-day success being made at a start-up level, rather than a biography/autobiography about two dudes who were in the right place at the right time.

I invented the chicken caesar salad. Please count how many you've produced over the years and submit a royalty fee of $3.00 per salad.....

I think you can see the benefits that both camps brought to the table and I'm not a fan of either. That being said, there are functions on each platform that are better suited to that platform although that gap is quickly closing. I can appreciate both innovators.

 

[puros_bran]

providing a free development environment.

Umm minus the registration fee? lol



But I am with you, The world is a little darker with his passing.. If for no other reason than his one or two word emails cease..