i just read Steve Jobs' resignation letter on my iPhone. then i turned my phone over, looked at the Apple logo on the back, and just stared at it for a minute straight. and for the first time, i couldn't believe that an object that i carry in my pocket every day even exists. i became an Apple fanboy shortly after my parents bought a Power Mac 6100 in 1993. i lived the dark days of Apple as a user. i saw just how bad, desperate, and utterly without guidance the Mac world was. this was pre-iMac, pre-iPod, pre-iPhone…and the iPad? forget science fiction.

then the second coming of Steve happened. a modest turnaround at first, to be sure. the fact that the iMac turned a modest success in 1997 didn't presage any of what Apple has become in terms of products. on the business side, they're now the biggest company in the world by market cap. insanely great has become just plain insane.

for the long-term Apple diehards, this is a scary time. i haven't updated to Lion, and there are things about it that make me squirm a little bit (what John Siracusa called "geek panic" in his Lion review). i don't want my iPhone to take over my computer. but i have my iPhone. my second iPhone, actually. how is that even possible?

in 2001 and 2002 i had a Palm V. it was kinda good for keeping track of my calendar and playing the odd game. but i wanted more. i wanted an uber-device. i sketched PDA/camera/phone hybrids in a little notepad. they were idle wishes. pipe dreams. now i have one in my pocket.

thanks, Steve. stay well, and be insanely great for as long as you can.