With its iconic leader sidelined through illness, it is clear that Apple is already losing its way.
First of all, the company is embroiling itself in a huge number of legal battles that are unlikely to end well for anyone involved apart from the lawyers.
Then there's the latest Mac operating system. I've heard lifelong Macheads moan and groan like never before about Lion and how bad, incompatible and buggy it is. One went as far as saying: "I didn't realise how ill Steve Jobs has been; he would never have allowed something this bad to be released."
And then the debacle over Final Cut, where the video editing system has been, in many eyes, been downgraded leaving many pro users in the lurch.
The iTunes software remains a nightmare for users, and as more and more 'open' systems appear, the walled garden approach and the gouging revenue share are driving more and more mainstream service providers away from the App Store (Amazon's Kindle, for example).
Finally, the release cycle that Apple used to control so well seems to be out of control and may well hit sales directly.
There's little doubt in my mind that Apple without Jobs at the helm will be a much diminished company.
First of all, the company is embroiling itself in a huge number of legal battles that are unlikely to end well for anyone involved apart from the lawyers.
Then there's the latest Mac operating system. I've heard lifelong Macheads moan and groan like never before about Lion and how bad, incompatible and buggy it is. One went as far as saying: "I didn't realise how ill Steve Jobs has been; he would never have allowed something this bad to be released."
And then the debacle over Final Cut, where the video editing system has been, in many eyes, been downgraded leaving many pro users in the lurch.
The iTunes software remains a nightmare for users, and as more and more 'open' systems appear, the walled garden approach and the gouging revenue share are driving more and more mainstream service providers away from the App Store (Amazon's Kindle, for example).
Finally, the release cycle that Apple used to control so well seems to be out of control and may well hit sales directly.
There's little doubt in my mind that Apple without Jobs at the helm will be a much diminished company.