Steve "Woz" Wozniak is often considered the "God" of Apple. He was the designer of the first ever Apple computers (Apple / & Apple //). At a recent developer forum at Intel, Woz gave a bit of advice to the engineers. He told them that, "the right way of going through life" is pursuing a vision without compromise.

"If you have technical ideas, if you know what you're good at, and you know what you're doing is right ... you have to shut them out," Woz said, in reference to others telling you how to do something.

According to InformationWeek, Woz went on to discuss other topics. He talked about being a successful inventor. While on this topic, he admitted that not having money helps the creativity.

InformationWeek has the full details on the interview.

PodBrix produces nifty lego figures that commemorate moments in Apple history, like the 1984 ad and a Steve Jobs keynote (I've got this one), as well as other things.

Two days from now, their next creation will go on sale: The young Jobs and Woz playset. While the Woz works on a circuit board, Jobs has another idea (yes, the thought bubble is a part of the set).

PodBrix has only produced 300 of these, and they typically sell out in minutes. Set your watches for 9:00 PM EST on 8/29/07. Good luck, and let us know if you get one!

Who says hybrids are slow?

Woz was recently ticketed for pushing his Prius to 104 m.p.h. on California Interstate 5. His excuse was that international traveling had him thinking in kilometers per hour, not miles. The judge thought this over, then handed Steve a $700US fine.

Why was Woz in such a hurry? Perhaps he had a date with Kathy.

Thanks, Phil!

Steve Wozniak showed up at Maker Faire this week - there he is zipping around on his Segway at right - and was classically "Woz."

He said very little of Apple, according to Infinite Loop, but instead spoke about his love of mathematics, his old dial-a-joke line and told the young electronics geeks in the audience how they can "...feel good about doing what you are good at." In other words, he displayed the brilliance and charm that make him such an interesting person.

The Woz, how can you not love the guy? He's like your favorite uncle, who just never quite grew up. Well back in January he appeared on Charlie Rose, presumably as part of publicity for his book, iWoz. They discuss a variety of interesting topics, including Apple and the other Steve. According to Woz, what makes Jobs special is that he "understand[s] what the human wants" so that "the human doesn't have to tangle" with the technology. Woz contrasts himself to Jobs, saying of the latter that "he wanted to change the world; he wanted to bring computing to the masses" whereas "all [Woz] wanted to do was design the hottest computer so that every engineer in the world would look at [him] and say, 'wow!'" They go on to talk about his philanthropy and other things as well.

Definitely fun stuff for the Apple fan, and pure vintage Woz. Check it out on Google Video.

iWoz - From Computer Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It has made its way into the audiobook section of the iTunes Music Store (iTs link). All 9 hours and 14 minutes of it. Patrick Lawlor does a fine job of narrating it, but he sounds nothing like Woz. And he's no Joey Slotnick, either. That always bothers me when I listen to autobiographies and memoirs. I keep expecting to hear the words straight from the horse's mouth. It's distracting to have it be someone who sounds completely different than what you know the author sounds like. Am I alone in that thinking?

I wonder if iWoz' presence in iTunes is Steve-o's way of making up for that $3,150 he cheated Woz out of?

Anyway, for $15.95, it can be yours - and as the iTunes store blurb reminds us, it also makes a great gift!

Thanks, Steve!

We know most of you are kinda over all the Woz buzz, but for those of you who still can't get enough, we direct you to this longish video of Guy Kawasaki, the original Mac Evangelist, interviewing with Steve Wozniak.

zBiz.tv has the footage and since it's almost an hour long, you'll appreciate that there are chapter markers available. The interview was filmed a few weeks ago at the Commonwealth Club of Silicon Valley, one of Woz's many iWoz book tour stops. It's a great interview and it's always a treat to have two icons on stage together, chatting like they are in your livingroom. The quality of the video itself is not very good, but the audio is solid so even if it gives you a headache to watch, you should still listen.

Woz's appearances in the media have, of late, have revealed more of his prankster hobbies than the seasoned legend of the computer age we know him to be. Recently, the Woz visited none other than Microsoft to give his book tour's speech, and David Weiss of the MacBU blogged some interesting notes from the event. While I'm sure he had his trusty lasers and Segway in tow in one way or another, Weiss's notes refreshingly cover more of the meat from Woz's speech, including remarks on everything from chip design, Steve Jobs' programming abilities (which I'm glad to finally have confirmation on) and the more human side of technology. It's an intriguing post that's making me wish I could drop in on one of his talks.

[via MacUser]

Woz's sharp, laser-cut metal business card may have already become more famous than Woz himself. How else can you explain one of his cards (signed, of course) going for $560 on eBay? The auction wasn't even for charity! Although the seller, Jon Bauer, who plays on Woz's Segway Polo team, did promise to take Woz and the team to lunch with the loot. Bauer claims the auction was just a test to see just how much someone would pay. Shortly after the listing went up, the Woz himself offered to sign the card before it was shipped. Richard in Iowa, aka "rharms2003," was the lucky winner and will be the recipient of the business card, a signed copy of Woz's book, and a personalized video message as seen above.

The only thing that bothers me about all this is that so far, the only thing the money is being put towards is lunch for a bunch of people who can surely afford their own meals. Hopefully once his fifteen minutes of fame have passed Bauer will offer up the cash for something more significant, like one of Woz's pet charities.

We all know this Woz quite well...



The prankster who still laughs at fart jokes and plays Segway Polo. The guy who admitted, in the email accompanying the above picture, which was taken backstage before his recent appearance on The Colbert Report by the friend of an acquaintance of mine: I suggested that one of us should do rabbit ears and Colbert declined so I did it. That part may make it less funny but it's true. I also left a sticker in the green room bathroom that is in OSHA style and colors with a picture of a butt with a poof coming out, and the words "Let's keep the air fresh." I hope it's still there.

But then there's the sensitive and impressively humble Woz. The Woz who responds to an insulting and juvenile question like this one, from Ask MetaFilter, with a disarming and brutally honest answer like this: "...I don't mind if people don't like me as long as it's for things I am. There's plenty to find there. I do try to remain the person I would have wanted to become, from when I was 10 and when I was 20. Even after something like Apple I managed to remain close to the same person, doing things I would have done had Apple never come about, like getting my degree and teaching and much more." [read the entire thing for proper context, it's short]

Steve Wozniak is a class act. 'Nuff said.

Thanks to phi for the Ask MeFi link.

Can this guy get around, or what? The Woz has been everywhere lately, from the Colbert Report to the It's Showtime event on a Segway, and he's on his way to the South Pole in a hydrogen Hummer. Now even NPR got their hands on the big W for an interview, waxing ecstatic about his life after Apple, and hopefully a bit more about his book than he got out on the Colbert Report. Check it out, though you'll need (*snicker*) Real Player or Windows Media support installed via Flip4Mac.

Thanks phi

Here's the video of last night's Colbert Report interview of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. It certainly is fun, and it seems Steven Colbert wasn't quite ready for the Woz's unique personality.

Thanks, Bill I.

That's right, heroes, Steve Wozniak is going head to head with Stephen Colbert on tonight's Colbert Report. Will Stephen nail the Woz? Will the Woz talk about his book (I bet he will).

Anyway, tune in to find out.

Attention Philadelphia area Mac geeks, Steve Wozniak will be speaking at the Free Library, on 19th and Vine, this Saturday at 2pm. He'll be talking about iWoz, his new autobiography. This even is free, and tickets are not required.

I'll be attending, and I thought it would be fun to see if we could have some sort of impromptu TUAW meetup. What say you all?

Who doesn't like the Woz? Communists, perhaps, but other than that I think he is universally liked (unlike some other Steves). As you know Woz has penned a memoir which means that promotion for the book is needed.

BusinessWeek's Hardy Green sat down with Woz and asked him a few questions. Woz assures people that he and Jobs have never fought, and that he still has a very good relationship with Apple.

Read the whole interview for the full scoop.