The original Macintosh was released in January 1984 amidst a marketing storm highlighted by a Super Bowl ad dubbed "1984" (directed by Ridley Scott). At first there was a lack of software for the machine, which departed from convention by using a GUI rather than text based interface, and this caused sales to be sluggish. Another reason initial sales were sluggish was the price: a hefty $2,000 at a time when $2,000 was $2,000. Undaunted Steve Jobs and Co plowed ahead, tweaking the hardware, writing new software programs and gradually turning the Macintosh into the machine of choice for the desktop publishing crowd.

In time the humble Macintosh would become the bedrock upon which Apple would construct the world's most valuable technology company and Steve Jobs would become a household name, a billionaire many times over and an icon in the world of industrial design.

Steve Jobs died today at the age of 56. Unlike many he lived long enough to see his wildest dreams come true, though that's cold comfort for the millions of people around the world who saw him as a one of the true visionaries of the post modern world of hi tech interconnectedness.