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20 Great Quotes: Steve Jobs vs. Bill Gates
Speaking about your business and passions can often define you as a person. However, what you say can sometimes come back and bite you.
I previously wondered how Bill Gates and Steve Jobs would be portrayed if they made a move about them today (Pirates of Silicon Valley: Then and Now). What have these pioneers of the computing industry said in the past that has defined who they are today?
I compiled 10 of the best quotes from both Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. See if you can guess who said what. Good Luck!
Quote 1
You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 2
As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 3
DOS is ugly and interferes with users’ experience.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 4
Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 5
I think it’s fair to say that personal computers have become the most empowering tool we’ve ever created. They’re tools of communication, they’re tools of creativity, and they can be shaped by their user.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 6
If you can’t make it good, at least make it look good.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 7
Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.
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Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 8
Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.
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Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 9
If I’d had some set idea of a finish line, don’t you think I would have crossed it years ago?
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 10
Life is not fair; get used to it.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 11
I’m the only person I know that’s lost a quarter of a billion dollars in one year…. It’s very character-building.
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Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 12
So we went to Atari and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got this amazing thing, even built with some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us? Or we’ll give it to you. We just want to do it. Pay our salary, we’ll come work for you.’ And they said, ‘No.’ So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, ‘Hey, we don’t need you. You haven’t got through college yet.’
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 13
Unfortunately, people are not rebelling against Microsoft. They don’t know any better.
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Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 14
If I were running Apple, I would milk the Macintosh for all it’s worth — and get busy on the next great thing. The PC wars are over. Done. Microsoft won a long time ago.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 15
We’ve got to put a lot of money into changing behavior.
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Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 16
When you want to do your homework, fill out your tax return, or see all the choices for a trip you want to take, you need a full-size screen.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 17
Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.
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Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 18
If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got 1000 MPG.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Bill Gates
Quote 19
Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Steve Jobs
Quote 20
I’ve always wanted to own and control the primary technology in everything we do.
To display answer, highlight the space next to Answer:
Answer: Steve Jobs
Sources:
- Steve Jobs Quotes
- Steve Jobs Quotes – The Quotations Page
- A Collection of 60 Inspirational Steve Jobs Quotes About Life, Design and Apple
- Bill Gates Quotes
Photo courtesy of Joi Ito.
How did you do with guessing? Were there any quotes that surprised you? Is there a quote that you really enjoy that I didn’t include?
Please share below in the comments.
Update (08/26/2010): Modified answer to transparent text.
Update (10/13/2010): Still having difficulties viewing answers? View the Answer Key.
How to Network in the Information Age
Have you networked with individuals at a conference or some other event (e.g. Code Camp, User Group, etc.)?
If you have, were you able to follow up the people that you met?
The means of following up with a network contact have changed. You can start networking in the information age by using many of the tools that you probably already use today.
Constants
The process and purpose of networking has remained pretty much the same over time.
1. We attend venues for conferences, training or seminars.
2. We use our social skills to speak with and interact with others at these venues.
3. We hope we can use our new networking contact for a new job reference, professional reference or friendship.
What has changed in networking – is the way that we follow up with our contacts.
The Old Way (Dark Age Networking)
Before the information age how did people follow up with their networking contacts? Most likely, it was done by snail-mail, e-mail or telephone.
Let me put into perspective how effective these means of follow up are. Say you receive one business card for every business card that you hand out. Unless, you have either a unique business card or an unforgettable personality – people are going to have a difficult time remembering you based on your name.
I suppose you could but your picture on your business card, but that is something that is probably best left to real estate agents.
The New Way (Information Age Networking)
In the information age, you will still give out business cards, but the contents of those business cards will be “links” to your contact information. The information on your business card is a way for your contacts to remember who you are without having to make an impression based on personality.
Contact Information Tools
There are many tools that you can use for your contact information. I recommend at least these three:
1. LinkedIn
Posting a link to your LinkedIn profile is probably the best tool that you can provide to your networking contacts. Especially if you are looking for a new job or to validate your background. LinkedIn provides the following:
- Allows contacts to see your professional job history and projects
- Allows contacts to see any recommendations you’ve given or received
- Allows contacts to see a profile picture to put a face with a name
2. Facebook
Facebook can be used for the right reasons and the wrong reasons. If you currently use Facebook for the wrong reasons (e.g. posting drunk pictures, complaining about work, etc.) – I suggest that you don’t use Facebook as a networking tool.
However, Facebook can be used for the right reasons – to provide an insight into your personal life.
By sharing the following on Facebook, a networking contact may find out more about you on on a personal level:
- Interests
- Hobbies
- Events in your life
I would also suggest using Facebook’s privacy settings, in case someone else posts a picture or writes something inappropriate to you.
3. Twitter
Most new users of Twitter don’t see the value of it. What Twitter can provide is a way to share daily information with your followers both professionally and personally.
Nobody wants to follow someone who posts mundane posts that add little value (e.g. “Just woke up”, “Eating breakfast”, “Showering”). Instead, use Twitter as follows:
- Posting insights on life
- Posting links to interesting articles or web sites
- Conversing with others on a particular subject
All of these tools allow for continuous networking beyond the initial connection.
How to Get Started?
1. Create a profile on each one of these networks.
2. Create two sets of business cards
- Sales Business Card – These will be the typical business cards with name, email, and phone number
- Networking Business Card – This will only contain your name and links to your profiles (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter)
3. Start attending events and networking!
* Picture courtesy of Joe Pemberton
The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: Video Reference
I just finished reading The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience by Carmine Gallo – this book is ideal for anyone who regularly delivers presentations, speaks for a living or wants to become a better speaker.
The Book
The book was filled with tips to help you develop and enhance your public speaking skills. Carmine Gallo effectively points out the techniques used by Steve Jobs that make his presentations both entertaining and effective.
The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs
How To Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience
Carmine Gallo
The Videos
Gallo references several notable speeches and presentations by Steve Jobs to illustrate his points. While Gallo does provide links to the videos in the book’s reference – I thought it would be helpful to provide direct links to the videos.
- Steve Jobs’ Macworld Keynote Speeches
- Steve Jobs’ WWDC Keynote Speeches
- Miscellaneous Steve Jobs Presentations
How To Network With Other Programmers On Twitter
I came across two blog posts today by @eriwen about why Twitter is a useful Social Networking tool for programmers:
Starting Off With Twitter
When I first heard about Twitter, I thought – that sounds stupid, who cares about what I am doing?
I am relatively new to Twitter and after using it for about a year, am just now starting to appreciate its value.
Initially, my tweets looked like Facebook status updates:
Going to the airport
Going to the beach
Out to lunch
Unless you’re my mother, you could probably care less about what I do with my free time.
Putting Twitter Into Perspective
Imagine if you were networking at a real (in person) social event like a programming user group meeting, wouldn’t you be more interested in programming discussions rather than discussions about my personal life? So why should Twitter be any different?
As a programmer, I am interested in hearing about programming methodology, news articles and other interesting topics surrounding technology.
If you were to find someone with similar interests, you are more likely to start a dialog and establish a true networking connection.
Finding Similar Interests
The biggest challenge that I’ve faced with using Twitter, is finding worthwhile people follow. You could follow a programmer who is somewhat famous like:
- Steve Wozniak (@stevewoz)
- Joel Spolsky (@spolsky)
- Jeff Atwood (@codinghorror)
But, unless you are about as famous as them, your tweets will probably be one-sided.
So where can you find programmers who share a similar social status as you?
JustTweetIt
JustTweetIt is a Twitter directory where you can find other users who share similar interests. You can browse different Twitter profiles within each category or you can add your own to as many different categories as you like.
wefollow
Wefollow is another Twitter directory, where you can search based on different tags. Wefollow allows you to also add your own Twitter user based on an series of tags that you specify.
Blogs
More and more programmers with blogs are sharing their Twitter usernames on their blogs. I welcome you to connect with me, if you find me interesting:
@dhirschl.
Where do you find people to follow?
10 More Ways To Get An Article On DZone
I was introduced to DZone not too long ago and it has now become my #1 resource for reading about the latest programming news.
I noticed a trend of the types of websites that are submitted to DZone and after reading 10 Ways to get an Article on DZone, I thought I would expand upon this and add 10 more ways to get an Article on DZone.
10. Interviewing Stories with Google
Everybody (including myself) probably wants to work for Google given the numerous benefits their employees enjoy. Does reading about the interview process provide a way to beat the system by knowing what to expect?
Sample Submissions:
- My Job Interview at Google (via catonmat.net)
- My interview experience with Google (via philosophicalgeek.com)
- Learn from their Mistakes: 15+ Google Interview Experiences (via linkmingle.com)
9. Cartoons that Appeal to Geek Humor
You can’t take life too seriously and not everything you read should be either. The funniest cartoon will be one that leaves non-programmers saying “I don’t get it.”
Sample Submissions:
- You’re a Geek if You Think This is Funny (via xkcd.com)
- Tech Support Cheat Sheet (Comic) (via xkcd.com)
- How a programmer reads your resume (via hanovsolutions.com)
8. Cheat Sheets & Reference Guides
When you don’t feel like looking through documentation or Googling for a particular solution, cheat sheets and reference guides are a useful tool.
Sample Submissions:
- Design Patterns Quick Reference (via mcdonaldland.info)
- The Great Cheat Sheet Roundup – Over 30 Cheatsheets for Developers! (via petefreitag.com)
- 15 useful cheat sheets for web developers (via eisabainyo.net)
7. Stories about Java
DZone has a large Java following courtesy of JavaLobby.org. Although more and more developers of other languages are using DZone, Java stories tend to carry some weight.
Sample Submissions:
- The Top 10 Unused Features in Java (via dzone.com)
- 7 year old girl implements Pet Store in Java (via craigbbaker.com)
- Java App Store Coming Soon! (via dzone.com )
6. Free Books
Yes, free as in beer. Programming books aren’t cheap and it is great when you can find a free alternative.
Sample Submissions:
- Free Programming Books (via e-booksdirectory.com)
- Mastering EJB3.0 – Free PDF Book Download (via amis.nl)
- 10 open source books worth downloading (via tectonic.co.za)
5. Stories about DZone
Heavy users of DZone are quick to point out DZone’s flaws and offer suggestions for improvement. I’m sure DZone also appreciates the feedback.
Sample Submissions:
- Digg is Dead to me – Hello DZone (via reynoldsftw.com)
- Helping dzone: a usability problem ? (via satov.blogspot.com)
- DZone Suggestion, More Comments (via dsoguy.blogspot.com)
4. Good and Bad Programmers
Like bad singers on American Idol, bad programmers apparently cannot tell for themselves that they shouldn’t be programming.
Sample Submissions:
- The 8 ball problem – the test most CS people fail… (via firstclassthoughts.co.uk)
- Signs You’re a Crappy Programmer (and don’t know it) (via damienkatz.net)
- Signs that you are a bad programmer (via sites.google.com/site/yacoset)
3. Version Control Systems
Requirements are never static and it only takes one time that you need to rollback changes on your code.
Sample Submissions:
- Git vs Svn Comparison (via git.or.cz)
- Free SVN & Trac hosting for your projects (via assembla.com)
- Why version control is important for solo developers (via cimgf.com)
2. Programming Life
Programmers want to know what others are up to in the field, particularly how to grow professionally and what mistakes to avoid.
Sample Submissions:
- The * stupidest things I’ve done in my programming job (via cherouvim.com)
- The Mistakes I Made in My Programming Career (via itscommonsensestupid.blogspot.com)
- 10 ways to kill your star programmer (via jroller.com)
1. Ask Questions
Social networking tends to attract the following people: those who have a lot to say and those who want to say more. Is there a better way to bring these two groups together?
Sample Submissions:
- Do we need to know basic math as programmers? (via lessthandot.com)
- Is Spring still lightweight? (via azeditech.com)
- For a Sr. Software Engineer position, do you think this interview question is fair? (via louderthanreason.com)
Update (12/11/2009): Added links to original content.
Enhance Your Skills By Belonging to Professional Organizations
If you work in information technology, how do you keep both your social and technical skills up-to-date to remain competitive? Enrolling in an academic program could be beneficial to improving your skills, but it could get expensive and often a technical curriculum will not cover the latest technologies. This is where belonging to a professional organization may be an option.
Social Skills
No matter what line of work you are in, everybody could use some improvement in their social skills. Unless you speak regularly to groups in your profession, the venues for you to practice public speaking are limited.
Toastmasters International is an organization that I have recently joined. Toastmaster’s provides a venue and focuses on helping members develop leadership, communication and public speaking skills. Most people would be apprehensive about joining an organization like this because of their fear of public speaking, but the reason Toastmasters exists is to help overcome this fear in a supporting environment.
Leadership
You acquire leadership skills by taking on roles each week to help out your fellow members. Some of the roles are:
Toastmaster - The M.C. for that day’s meeting.
Timer - Keeps track of each speaker’s time.
‘Ah’ Counter – Identify filler words that speakers use (e.g. er, um, ah, but, so, etc.)
Evaluator - Ensures speakers follow the guidelines of their prepared speeches.
Table Topics Master – Facilities a session known as Table Topics or speaking off-the-cuff.
Communication & Public Speaking
At all meetings there is an opportunity to speak by giving a prepared speech or participating in table topics. If you fulfill one of the roles above, you must present your findings to the group.
If this sounds like something you are interested in, I encourage you to contact a local club and attend a meeting as a guest to see firsthand how Toastmasters could help you. Membership fees can vary by club, but the cost is usually less than $100 for the year.
Technical Skills
With technology changing as fast as it does these days, learned skills can become obsolete very quickly. Fortunately there are plenty of online tutorials and books/magazines available so you can advance your skills through self-study. I think the difficulty lies in determining what you should study because there are so many technologies out there. I’ve read blogs where people ask “What programming language should I learn?” One possible answer to this question is: try learning different ones. If you want to commit yourself to life-long learning about new topics, consider joining a technical professional organization.
ACM
I recently joined the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). ACM provides access to journals, magazines, online courses and books. The selling point for me was their collection of online books. For the price of a couple of technical books, I can access over 1,000 books online. ACM also provides a monthly email consisting of several articles related to your interests. These are just a few of the benefits that they provide. ACM offers two levels of yearly membership the basic membership is $99 USD and if you want the basic plus access to their Digital Library $198 USD.
IEEE
IEEE is a little less focused than ACM and covers a wider range of fields such as physical sciences, biology, law, as well as, the computing fields. IEEE provides access to numerous journals and magazines, but did not offer access to the same book catalog as ACM. The cost of a yearly IEEE membership is $169 USD.
Networking
The added benefit of belonging to either a social or technical professional organization is the opportunity to network. These organizations often host conferences several times a year, where you can meet people who share your interests and are in your field of work.
What are some other professional organizations that you belong to?