End of an Era

The news of Steve Job's passing was tough to take. Deep down I knew that the day would come, but it didn't make it any easier to take. Some may say that he was only an individual, just a man. But, as a designer and technologist, he was so much more. He was a legend. He was a hero. He was Steve.

You see, Steve influenced nearly every field I've ever worked in. From photography (Apple had an early digital camera) to video production (Final Cut Studio brought it to the masses) to graphic design, Apple (and more specifically Steve's vision) shaped how I worked. There was seldom a task I did that didn't involve an Apple or Apple-inspired product that had its origination in his mind.

For the past few years I have focused primarily on website development. Even there, Steve's influence was still strong. He taught designers to think beyond a keyboard and mouse interface. He pushed us to imagine a world where users interacted with dynamic content with their fingertips and not with a pointer. There were tablets before the iPad, but Steve's drive pushed it as close to perfection as had ever been done.

There's no doubt the technology industry and the world lost a great man. Fortunately for us, ideas live on well past their creator's expiration. Steve, thank you for inspiring us all to think differently.