August 2000 || Volume 01, Issue 01
by David Schultz

The Steve Jobs Flying Circus and Road Show

The Expo has come. The Expo has gone. The reviews are still coming in. But per usual the same refrain is being heard. "Steve Jobs the showman." "Steve Jobs took his P. T. Barnum skills to New York." "Steve Jobs wowed the crowd." We've heard it over and over again - Jobs is a showman. I, for one, do not understand this description. Let me look at some of the reasons a person might say this and I'll tell you why I get confused when people say it.

What's the Real Show?

First, one might say Jobs is a showman because he draws large crowds. And indeed he does. This year's NY Expo was the biggest Expo ever. There were more vendors, more attendees, more conferences and seminars, than ever before. And right now, this year's Expo ranks second in event attendance in New York!

But I don't think they came just to see Jobs. In fact, I don't think Jobs is the big draw. Sure, I would love to see Steve Jobs on the stage strutting his stuff, drinking his bottled water and clasping his hands together in a Buddhist fashion. Sure, he is a historical figure, just like Bill Gates I guess (you don't how hard it is for me to say that!), and so he will be a draw. But let us make no mistake about it - the crowds at the MacWorld Expo are self-perpetuating organisms. There is something even larger than Steve Jobs - it's called the "Mac mystique." It can't be put into words completely; it can't be measured; it cannot be quantified or bottled like the water Steve drinks. It is, as a gangster might say, "this Mac thing of ours." It is a force, a fellowship, a spontaneous outpouring of enthusiasm for something called the "the Macintosh." That's what people come for. It is a universal spirit within Mac users that draws them. Steve Jobs is merely the catalyst, albeit an important one.

In a sense, a very large cosmic sense, Steve Jobs is accidental to the whole thing. Don't get me wrong - he is necessary for it, for without him it would not have happened in the first place. But he wasn't alone, and the mere fact that he exists is not sufficient for what has happened in the last 24 years.

Introduce Yourself

No fireworks needed

Second, one might say that Steve Jobs is a showman because he introduces products in exciting ways. Okay, I am a college professor. I am not a moron. But I don't see this, I am sorry. All he does is take the veil off, turn a table around, or lift a curtain. That's about it. There are no fireworks, no flames and smoke and lasers shooting across the stage with scantly dressed women ushering in iMacs with a flick of their wrists. Steve Jobs does not stand there with top hat, cane and say "Right this way..." He just shows us the newest stuff.

But herein lies the clue to why he is spoken of in this way. Consider the Cube. This remarkable G4 machine is, well, words escape me... remarkable I guess. I haven't seen one in the flesh yet. But it is an 8 x 8, 14 pound, clear and white, quiet computer. It took our breath away if merely from the sheer engineering feat it embodies. It is like nothing else out there (and add) even if there have been other cubes produced before.

Wait a minute... I am repeating myself. I think back. Haven't I heard myself say "it's like nothing else out there" before? Didn't I say that about the iMac? Didn't I say that about that B&W G3? Didn't I say that about AirPort? Didn't I say that about the G4 and iBook? Am I not saying it about the versions of OS X I have seen? Yes on all counts... but this is the price we pay for following an innovator.

Now, Steve Jobs doesn't have a band strike up when he introduces a new product. And this is something Mac evangelists have to understand sooner or later. Steve merely uncovers a new product and stands back, allowing it to work its magic. That's all he has to do. The point is obvious: The product sells itself. That is what Mac evangelists need to see.

Evangelism can deteriorate quickly into defense. But when we do it, we are, I think, defending the indefensible. "What! Schultz-have you lost your mind! Are you serious? The Mac is not indefensible!!" most of you are screaming. Well, I may have lost my mind - the jury is out on that point. But I am serious. I do not mean to say that the Mac cannot be defended but that it needs no defense. It speaks for itself and this is something I think Jobs fully realizes.

Now this does not mean we should not clean the Windows so that Wintellers can see through to the Mac's self-defense. There is a lot of junk and nonsense out there and it must be dealt with. Much of it has to do with what the Mac is not - the Mac is not short on software, the Mac is not less stable, the Mac is not slower than any other machine out there, the Mac is not a toy. But as far as what the Mac is (while logically related to what it is not), once we deal with bias, stupidity, ignorance and prejudice, the Mac will become attractive to even the most die-hard Winteller. We can throw all the facts and tests we want at any Winteller, but it is useless because to him they are not facts anyway. Until his heart changes, facts will be useless.

True, some will be forever blind. But I have found, as I have in any religion, that the blindness is self-imposed or rooted in pride or worries of nonconformity. Until some Wintellers undergo a change in human nature, a veritable regeneration of the spirit, they will not see it. But that, my friends, is out of our hands. All we can do it provide the opportunity for the Mac spirit to change his heart. And forcing Wintellers into buying a Mac never produced true repentance in anyone.

I saw this while doing demo's for Apple. There is really very little I have to do to sell a Mac. All the questions that are asked are ones we've heard before and simple to deal with. I just get out of the way, let the blueberry and tangerine colors catch one's eyes, and simply try to get him in a position to see the Mac mystique for himself. I am not a salesperson - I have no desire to ever become one. But one of the easiest things to sell must be a Mac I think, especially over the last few years.

Fall for this...

Have you ever wondered (I mean really thought about it) why creative professionals fall for the Mac? I do not mean just artists. A creative professional can be a doctor, university professor, architect or programmer, and they all involve high degrees of creativity. I believe we short change them, and place too high a value on media artists, by not seeing this. It has to do with more than just the fact that the Mac is the best creative machine out there. This has something to do with it, but it's not the whole story. One is creative by nature; artists, professors and programmers are born not made. They acquire training in their areas because that is their nature, though some find out later rather than sooner. And some will be forever unhappy if they fail to follow their nature. So I come to my controversial (by some lights) thesis which I have been defending for some time - A Mac user is not made, he's born. This means some are forever lost. Get used to it. It also means that if you use a Mac, and you love to use one, and can't imagine using anything else, you have been chosen by fate, chance and decree to be one of the blessed ones. Let us pray...

This has ramifications for the "Who's the Cube for?" debate going on. I have argued, as have two others, that the Cube is for Steve Jobs first and foremost. He fancies himself an archetype I think - a paradigm of the perfect Mac user with untainted sensibilities who sees the Mac for what it truly is. So I think the question "Who's the Cube for?" is about a certain kind of person with certain kinds of sensibilities and tastes. It is not about a market niche at all and we miss the point looking for one. Just look at some of the debate and you'll how these creative people are already imagining new an exciting ways to use the Cube. It's called creative freedom, something you might not be aware of if you have been stuck in Windows for too long. We've seen discussions about rack mounting them, using them as portables, and the list goes on. Thanks Steve for allowing us to decide who it's for.

What DO YOU Want?

Third, one can say that Steve Jobs is a showman because he gives people what they want. This even accounts for the fanatic following perhaps. Yes, this true, as I just suggested in the previous paragraph. But it's true only to a limit.

Buttons? We don't need no stinking buttons!

Apple's matrix of six slots, the Pro, Consumer and whatever the new slot is, has a certain artificiality about it to me. As I said, I don't think Jobs completely thinks in terms of markets. And if in fact Mac users are born and not made then of course it is true that he gives them what they naturally want. But it is an epistemic fact of human nature that people rarely know what they want, let alone know what is good for them. This could be an excuse for paternalism, but not for Jobs. No, it is an opportunity for prophetic vision for him. He extrapolates from himself and determines through this what his paradigmatic Mac user would want whether he realizes it or not. Jobs makes himself an Everyman and we see ourselves in his products.

Watching the reaction to the keynote has become a sort of experiment for me, an experiment to test the empirical validity of this thesis. If in fact Jobs gives us what we didn't know we wanted instead of giving us what we think we want, then what would we expect to see after an Expo? One thing is an immediate, but slow, reaction. Get it? The immediate reaction is one of "Wow... cool... I'm speechless" and so on. We are surprised and caught off guard as though we are in therapy and the therapist eerily sees deeper into us than we do ourselves. It's what we would expect when one is trying to say "I didn't even know I wanted that - but now I do!" This is immediate reaction, and then slowly we try to find words to make sense of the new found insight into our nature. Thus the debate over the Cube as we try to find justification for our new found "need." One might also see some ambivalence over the new products as well. After all, when one sees into us, we can become embarrassed and feel naked even when fully clothed. Defense mechanisms kick in. I know this is the way it was for me and the iMac - "That's kind of weird" I said. But you know over time it sank in and fertilized my heart until I realized how much this machine was something that was just too groovy, man. So we bought my parents one! I am having the same reaction to the Cube, to be honest. I can't make up my mind. Is it cool or not? Is it something I could use or not? One minute I say "yes" and the next minute I say "I don't know." But I believe the first time I see one in the flesh, watch the bottom slowly rise up to reveal the exquisite design, it will be like the perfect medicine for what ails me. (Self control now Dave!! You know you can do it.)

So, Then What is Steve Jobs?

Forth and finally, one might say that Jobs is a showman because... well, he's Steve Jobs. He has a flare and passion about him, that historically documented magnetism we hear about it.

I think this is closer to the truth but does not make him a showman. Is he P. T. Barnum because people are attracted to him and he has a way with people? No, if this was the case he'd be drawing people in by playing on their gullibilities instead of talking about the nexus between "technology and art." This isn't manipulation or cynicism, it's inspiration. Why is it that only two days a year (three if my football team wins another national championship) I feel like going out and picking fights with Wintellers? I feel inspired. I feel haughty and arrogant; I feel proud and powerful. My wife must hide the checkbook and credit cards before the collection plate passes by. The preacher has inspired me because he speaks of big things, big ideas and high ideals like art and technology. This is not P. T. Barnaun. It is Hannibal, Alexander the Great and Joan of Arch rallying the troops to bravery and courage in the face of fear. Big difference. Jobs is no more P. T. Barnum than I am the Buddha.

This Way to the Great Egress...

This then is the Steve Jobs Flying Circus and Road Show. But in reality, it is more like a Crusade than a circus or show. It is a time when true believers come together and think big and think different; it is when we are inspired to keep going, to keep fighting the good fight, to keep our eyes on the prize. If a few Wall Street types take notice, if a few Wintel writers make snide remarks, and if we are described as off our rockers for taking all this much too seriously, then that is fine with me. It's this Mac thing of ours, you know, and not everyone will get it, ever. So be it. I would rather be inspired to think big and different, and be laughed at for it, than to think thinly and monopolistically... ahem.

David Schultz - dschultz@macosjournal.com
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