IDF: Apple co-founder Wozniak bashes hacks

 

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By Darien Graham-Smith in San Francisco

Posted on 21 Aug 2008 at 17:50

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has publicly chastised bloggers and the press, accusing reporters of inaccuracy, hypocrisy and negative attitudes.

Wozniak - or "Woz" as he is affectionately known - was speaking to US technology presenter Moira Gunn at the closing keynote session of the San Francisco Intel Developer Forum.

He based his complaints on personal experience: "I heard that I was supposed to be dating Kathy Griffin," he commented. "My response was 'who's that?' That was actually how I first came to meet her."

"And when the iPhone came out, I stood in line with everybody else. I did not cut in line, despite the press stories that say I did."

"But you know what?" he continued, turning on the reporters who'd misrepresented him. "At MacWorld, these press guys get seated first, in the prime seats. They're the ones cutting in line."

Woz defends Jobs

He went on to decry sniping at public figures in general: "I don't like stories that put famous people down," he complained, arguing that commentators don't give credit where it's due - especially in the case of his former colleague, Steve Jobs.

"When Steve Jobs left Apple, I did feel that was a little disloyal. And when he came back I was a little dissatisfied. But Steve's got that one mind that controls the company to keep things so good you've just gotta have them. Products like the iPod and the iPhone... you can't say more than that."

"Yet now we're in the days of blogs, the facts don't really come into play. People love to jump on famous people - everybody just wants to see heroes get beat up."

Woz added that after leaving Apple in the late 1980s he spent eight years as a volunteer teacher - but had deliberately avoided publicity for his community work.

"No press," he confirmed. "I didn't want those people around children."