In a post Steve Jobs world, we'll be OK

When I heard that Steve Jobs had stepped down as CEO of Apple, I was on a remote section of U.S. Highway 15 in northern Pennsylvania on my way to Toronto. I found out via the device that Jobs put into my hand, even though he didn't sell it directly to me -- the iPhone.

Some might be loathe to admit it, but Jobs has had an impact on all of us -- from the most loyal Apple fan to people such as my husband, who is the love of my life and a diehard Linux user. When he showed me the latest version of Ubuntu in July, the first thing I thought was of all the Apple influences I could see in the program.

We knew the era would end, and really, 14 years is forever in an age where information and technology are developed nearly as fast as the speed of light. But, it felt like Steve Jobs would always be there, emerging into the public a few times a year in his black turtleneck, jeans and New Balance sneakers. The tech version of Santa Claus, his keynotes were the new Sears Wish Book.

Over the past few years, the tech community held its breath as it realized that Jobs, like all of us, is mortal. Its chief speculation? What would a post-Jobs world be like for Apple? For us? Apple's rise to tech dominance and financial stardom appeared to lay on the shoulders of a single man. It can be argued the company suffered greatly without him the first time around, falling to the brink of irrelevance before Jobs stepped back in the driver's seat, swung the company on a huge U-turn and brought it back.

Apple will be fine. Why? Steve Jobs made sure it would be so.

Like weaning a baby on to solid foods, Steve gradually has been letting other people take over during Apple keynotes. Instead of standing there telling us himself about the life-changing device in his hand, he's letting other people do the talking for him. It's no accident that he did this.

When the iPod came out, or heck, even the iPhone, did anyone other than the most diehard Apple fans know who Tim Cook was? Would we, in the post-iMac world, ever dream of anyone other than Jobs unveiling an Apple product? It has happened, but Steve has gradually stepped back to where he's more a bookend than the meat of the program. It's as if he's saying, "I trust these people to develop the product you have in your hands. You can trust them too. Don't focus on the person giving the lecture, focus on the product." Cook's learned at the knee of Jobs. He won't change what works.

Jobs surrounded himself with the people that shared his vision. This is not 1984, not by a long shot. Jobs didn't leave over a corporate struggle this time. Apple isn't suddenly going to start putting Flash on iDevices or make a last-ditch effort to save HP computers or anything like that. The company is going to keep going in the same way Jobs ran it, though Tim Cook will add his own style. Jobs knew, more than any of us, that this day was coming. He probably thought at one point he wouldn't make it to see the conception of the iPhone or iPad.

Jobs is still chairman of the board and an Apple employee. He's still on the Disney/Pixar board -- another company that survived the loss of its titular head and not only survive, but produced some of its greatest works in the decades after Walt Disney died.

This is just another step in the weaning process. When the formal announcement of the iPhone 5 and fall iPod products comes in a few weeks, I think Jobs will be there in person, but he won't do the talking. Like any good parent, he's letting those he nurture start out on their own. He'll watch, he'll guide, but it's their turn now.

Apple will be OK. So, will we.