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The following editorial appeared Thursday in The San Jose Mercury News:
The death of Steve Jobs on Wednesday was a sad milestone for Silicon Valley, for the world technology industry and certainly for everyone who has personally experienced the man's energy, creativity and epic charisma. What a different place this valley would have been without him — and what a different world without his vision, which changed the way we work and the way we live.
His departure from Apple in August was laden with sadness, since it was clear then that his long struggle with pancreatic cancer was nearing its end. Our editorial at that time had the overtones of a passing rather than a resignation. Here is what we said:
The resignation of Silicon Valley's rock star CEO, Steve Jobs, came as no surprise to the Apple faithful who have been worrying about his medical condition and know how seriously he took his duties.
Jobs' departure from the top job at Apple is a loss for Silicon Valley. But it's also a loss for the nation, which is in desperate need of entrepreneurial leadership to get out of this economic slump.
The valley has had some true titans. Robert Noyce. David Packard. William Hewlett, Andrew Grove. Gordon Moore. Jobs, with his unparalleled talent for marrying technology, design and entertainment, stands alongside them.
The iPhone isn't Dick Tracy stuff. It's way beyond what anyone dreamed of even five years before it was invented. An attractive, sleek phone, music player, book reader, television, video library and so much more — in the palm of our hands and at a price millions of Americans can afford. This is the very definition of genius.
And the iPhone isn't the only device historians will recall when Jobs' legacy is chronicled. The iMac, iPod and iPad are all equally innovative — and none may equal the beloved Macintosh, invented with Steve Wozniak, for pure creativity.
Jobs knew failure as well as he did success. He was unceremoniously removed as chairman of Apple in 1985. But he learned from that failure and, in true Silicon Valley fashion, returned with a flourish, dreaming up product after cool product that screamed to the world, "Can you top this?"
And all of this genius hasn't just improved the net worth of Apple designers, or helped harried office workers manage their lives. It's created hundreds of thousands of jobs — maybe more — for Apple store salespeople and app developers, at cellphone companies and accessory manufacturers. Apple has become its own industry.
The question the valley is asking today is to what degree Jobs' departure hurts Apple's ability to continue its amazing run of success.
In years past, this editorial board was among those critical of Apple's succession plan, or perceived lack thereof. But with Tim Cook poised to take the reins and a strong bench of talent in place, Jobs may yet have the last laugh.
Apple watchers seem in agreement that the company is well positioned for the foreseeable future, assuming product development is indeed in place for the next year or two.
The huge challenge for Apple will be when the company has to decide what its next "big" innovation will be without Jobs to drive the decision.
"Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have, " Jobs told Fortune magazine in 1998. "When Apple came up with the Mac, IBM was spending at least 100 times more on R&D. It's not about money. It's about the people you have, how you're led, and how much you get it."
He closed his letter of resignation to the Apple board by saying, "I believe Apple's brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it."
The valley and the nation can only hope that is true.