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Atari Founder Nolan Bushnell on Steve Jobs at Atari and Finding the Next Jobs

HiRez said:
I don't understand this part, can someone explain it to me? What does he mean by the 1% who created it? Why would 1% of people create something, and why wouldn't the people who created the idea think it was cool?
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Correct Quote from 0:24:34 is 'if you come up with an idea, and 99 % of the people think it is a crazy idea, and 1 % think it is a cool idea, than that 1 % is you, pursue it with all vigor.'

He speaks about believing in yourself is all it takes. I notice this all the time. When I come up with an idea, the first reaction from others is to a) tell me whats all wrong with it or b) tell me that it has already be done before.

That's why Nolan says we shouldn't care if there are 99% nay-sayer, just be the only person (the 1%) wo believes and pursue your crazy ideas nonetheless. 'The more revolutionary the idea is, the fewer people will think it is cool.'
 
HiRez said:
I don't understand this part, can someone explain it to me? What does he mean by the 1% who created it? Why would 1% of people create something, and why wouldn't the people who created the idea think it was cool?

I mean is he basically just saying if 99% of people thing something is crazy and 1% of people think it's cool, it's probably an idea worth pursuing?
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It is just a SERIOUSLY unqualified way of saying that sometimes a really good idea will be seen as crazy by the vast majority.

I'd add that 99% of the time, the 99% is probably right. But, if it really is a good idea, that person has to believe in it, or they will fail because they listened to all the nay-sayers along the way.
 
Excellent way of putting it, it reminded me of having to shoot a football match for a sport channel once. I told them I don't know the sport and didn't care really. Everything was in the shot but had no idea what was going on. As a viewer it must have been awfully distant and uninteresting. Still need to finish the book to be honest, found it messy and un engaging.

CrickettGrrrl said:
I thought that Isaacson was repetitious for one thing (so help me god if I hear, read or see the word "petulant" or variants again in my lifetime! He exceeded the quota twice over, at least); and in spite of the book length, all the interviews, all the research, it felt like Isaacson didn't really get what was so amazing about this computer revolution. I just felt that he is comfortable in thinking in stereotypes. He didn't reach.
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Puevlo said:
I disagree. Showering is very important for hygiene and can stave off cancer.
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Really? How so.

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maxosx said:
Putting "things" above personal hygiene & health, speaks volumes about the person...
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What does it say about the person. That he will end up as a billionaire and go down as a major player in history? Just wondering.
 
Issacson's book gives very little to Jobs time at Atari, doesn't properly explain how Al Alcorn hired him, how he was just a technician, nor the whole story of how arcade Breakout was created by Wozniak...

If you want a much more indepth glimpse at Jobs early years from 19yo at Atari, then you need to head over to Amazon and pick up this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Atari-Inc-Mr-Curt-Vendel/dp/0985597402

Pentad said:
Sadly, a terrible autobiography.
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Great talk, Bushnell comes across as a really wise guy. Just went on to listen to the Jobs sction but the whole thing was very interesting.
 
Puevlo said:
I disagree. Showering is very important for hygiene and can stave off cancer.
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I doubt he never showered at all. And I would love to see some backing for the whole cancer comment.

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tknelson said:
... and you thought guys walking around with their bluetooth talking loudly into air were d-bags. Nothing that looks anything like project glass is ever going to be embraced by the general public.
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I suspect that won't be because you look like a douche.

So much as
1. Doesn't work with the iPhone (at least based on what I've read)
2. Cost at this time
3. They want to blast images right into folks eyes.

Make it more universal and customizable, cheaper and make it more like a pair of regular glasses where it it projected on the lenses and they might have a shot. Particularly since many folks already have to wear glasses.

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Risco said:
The difference is that if Apple was to launch it, then sales would be through the roof.
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It would also probably not look so dumb. After all it would have to pass the Jony test. If it doesn't make Sir Jony look sexy then it fails.

Oh and it has to be made of al-u-mini-um. Lol
 
atarimuseum said:
Issacson's book gives very little to Jobs time at Atari, doesn't properly explain how Al Alcorn hired him, how he was just a technician, nor the whole story of how arcade Breakout was created by Wozniak...

If you want a much more indepth glimpse at Jobs early years from 19yo at Atari, then you need to head over to Amazon and pick up this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Atari-Inc-Mr-Curt-Vendel/dp/0985597402
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The Atari book looks interesting!
 
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atarimuseum said:
Issacson's book gives very little to Jobs time at Atari, doesn't properly explain how Al Alcorn hired him, how he was just a technician, nor the whole story of how arcade Breakout was created by Wozniak...

If you want a much more indepth glimpse at Jobs early years from 19yo at Atari, then you need to head over to Amazon and pick up this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Atari-Inc-Mr-Curt-Vendel/dp/0985597402
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I really don't mean to pry, well actually I do :), but are you Curt Vendel whom I know runs the Atari Museum?

Quite wonderful to have both you and Marty Goldberg in the same thread.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
Re: not showering. I've read that Jobs truly thought that his fruit diet made him naturally smell good. Apparently the diet at least made it so he couldn't smell himself :)

As for Atari, Pong engineer Al Alcorn noted that he later figured out why Jobs would only "work" at night when nobody else was around to see:

"Jobs never did a lick of engineering in his life. He had me snowed," Alcorn later recalled. "It took years before I figured out that he was getting Woz to 'come in the back door' and do all the work while he got the credit."
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MacDav said:
What does it say about the person. That he will end up as a billionaire and go down as a major player in history? Just wondering.
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I guess it depends on your worldview and priorities as to what 'success' is. He currently has nothing. Yes, His family is well set-up. WE have some great stuff to use. But, most rich kids would much rather have more time with mom and dad than stuff. And if materialistic naturalism is not the case (which I would argue), there are much more important things than billions of dollars and notoriety. So, I have mixed feelings about Jobs in this regard.
 
WestonHarvey1 said:
It's the cool thing to say, especially if you haven't read it.
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kinda what I thought, though I bet he prolly did read it. My opinion of it was that it was very good and it gave the people a good very insight into Jobs's mind and how Apple operated. I find myself pretty knowledgeable on how Apple and Steve was. Though I still learned a lot from the book
 
kdarling said:
As for Atari, Pong engineer Al Alcorn noted that he later figured out why Jobs would only "work" at night when nobody else was around to see:
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No, that was not why Jobs was on the night shift, you're trying to draw a correlation between two different happenings. Jobs was specifically put on the night shift by Alcorn and Bushnell because of his smell and because of his attitude. The head of his department, Don Lang, came to Alcorn after only a day and basically said "He’s filthy, smells, is completely obnoxious and doesn’t know electronics!" That's when Bushnell came up with the idea to put him on the night shift, and that's when he started being a tech for Harold Lee. And there were plenty of people also working the night shift, claiming no one was around to see would not be accurate.

The quote of Al's you're drawing from is specifically in regards to Breakout. Al knew full well when he originally hired jobs in '74 that he wasn't an engineer, that's why he put him as a tech. And that's why he was surprised when Jobs showed up with a prototype of Breakout. Both because Al had just been discussing the project with Bristow and Bushnell only a few days before and had no idea it had been assigned to anyone, and because... Steve had no experience to be able to do something like that, yet there it was.

For their part Bristow and Bushnell knew full well Woz would be doing the actual engineering, that's the only reason they gave it to Jobs.
 
SteveW928 said:
I guess it depends on your worldview and priorities as to what 'success' is. He currently has nothing. Yes, His family is well set-up. WE have some great stuff to use. But, most rich kids would much rather have more time with mom and dad than stuff. And if materialistic naturalism is not the case (which I would argue), there are much more important things than billions of dollars and notoriety. So, I have mixed feelings about Jobs in this regard.
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Don't know how much you really know about Mr. Jobs, other than what seems to be going around lately. Fact is he didn't care at all about money. In his interview (The Lost Interview) He says when he was 21 he was worth a million dollars. At 22 about 10 million and I think by age 25 worth 100 million. He says it meant nothing to him, what was important was the work, the creative process. He was probably one of the least materialistic people around. As a billionaire he lived in a relatively modest home in a modest neighborhood. So, he was an interesting person. Definitely not your typical mogul. Since I didn't know the man personally, I will reserve any self righteous judgement of him to others who are prone to feeling morally superior.
 
Not comparing myself with steve but sometimes due to work pressure, even I skip shower for 2/3 days & manage with washed cloths & deodorants :p
Everyone around me understands that as sometimes even they do same thing :D
 
There is a great deal of research showing that too much washing is un-hygenic.

Daily showers are an unhealthy practice brainwashed into us via the false shame used to market soap.
 
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