Back in the olden days, make that 2003, when Accurate Always was designing the first Voxida interface, it was an unofficial mantra to "Apple it up." Steve Jobs, leading the Apple design team helm, was the undeniable tastemaker; the user interfaces made the Mac an instant friend, the user docs were helpful and efficient, and the corporate culture was weird. Really weird. Weird enough that they pulled off miracles. So, in 2003, we breathed and ate telecom tech (and those awesome little chocolate covered espresso beans) and more than once did an informal salute to Steve Jobs, the Phreaker.
What a lot of people don't know is that Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak illegally (and, this author believes, rather comically,) learned how to place international phone calls, free. Decades ago, Steve Jobs was already thinking different, using blue box devices to seize international trunk lines, with Wozniak even calling the Pope. This was possible by using tones, generated by the "blue box", as in-band signaling, gaming the switchboard.
Steve, we salute thee. Thanks for the laughs, raising the bar for user interface design and truly being "insanely great." You changed the world and our offering.
"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes... the ones who see things differently -- they're not fond of rules... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things... they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do." -Steve Jobs
Nice. This is a great tribute.
Posted by: Tom Anderson | October 06, 2011 at 12:08 PM
I met Steve in Cupertino a few times before. I think he would have gotten a kick out of this. I wish we still had a blue box that could reach him, regardless of where he is now. Phreak on.
Posted by: Stacey | October 06, 2011 at 12:11 PM
Really?? Ha! The Wikipedia article link is worth a look too. Thanks for sharing this, Kate!
Posted by: Terry Miller | October 06, 2011 at 12:14 PM
You can read a little more on Phreaking here http://www.telephonetribute.com/phonephreaking.html The page sorely needs to be updated (it still says Steve Jobs works at Pixar) but it's cool to see the Cap'n Crunch whistles. Enjoy!
Posted by: Kate | October 06, 2011 at 03:14 PM
Despite everything I've read about Steve Jobs and his legacy over the past few days, this is the standout. It's quirky, irreverent and plugs a product that I've heard also is one of the insanely great, with a light touch. Nice. :)
Posted by: Pete Steffen | October 10, 2011 at 02:28 PM
Thanks so much, Pete. While we'd never, ever, put ourselves in the Jobs class, we do try. If you ever want to see Voxida in action, drop me a line and I'll show you her myself http://www.accuratealways.com/forms/contact_us.htm Hope you enjoy the rest of Columbus Day. Possibly not the most action packed of holidays but we take what we can get. :D
Posted by: Kate | October 10, 2011 at 02:33 PM
Thanks, Kate.I just hit you on FB.
Posted by: Pete Steffen | October 10, 2011 at 02:35 PM
That works too. I monitor our corporate page daily at http://www.facebook.com/voxida
Posted by: Kate | October 10, 2011 at 02:36 PM
Steve really was what made the Valley. He set the tone and it's good to see a tech company that pays such a wonderful tribute. Off to an Apple store....
Posted by: SL Peterson | October 13, 2011 at 12:44 PM