Steve Wozniak, Co-Founder of Apple Computer Inc., a Silicon Valley icon and philanthropist for more than thirty years, has helped shape the computing industry with his design of Apple’s first line of products the Apple I and II and influenced the popular Macintosh. In 1976, Wozniak and Steve Jobs founded Apple Computer Inc. with Wozniak’s Apple I personal computer. The following year, he introduced his Apple II personal computer, featuring a central processing unit, a keyboard, color graphics, and a floppy disk drive. The Apple II was integral in launching the personal computer industry.
In 1981, he went back to UC Berkeley and finished his degree in electrical engineering/computer science. For his achievements at Apple Computer, Wozniak was awarded the National Medal of Technology by the President of the United States in 1985, the highest honor bestowed on America’s leading innovators. Through the years, Wozniak has been involved in various business and philanthropic ventures, focusing primarily on computer capabilities in schools and stressing hands-on learning and encouraging creativity for students. Making significant investments of both his time and resources in education, he adopted the Los Gatos School District, providing students and teachers with hands-on teaching and donations of state-of-the-art technology equipment. He founded the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and was the founding sponsor of the Tech Museum, Silicon Valley Ballet and Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose.
Wozniak currently serves as Chief Scientist for Fusion-IO and is a published author with the release of his New York Times best selling autobiography, iWoz: From Computer Geek to Cult Icon, in September 2006 by Norton Publishing.
S. Wozniak has visited Armenia to receive the prize of the RA president for investment and contribution to the development of world IT in 2011. This prize is awarded every year to a person, who has brought unique contribution to the development of IT in the world. The prize and nomination were launched in 2009 based on the signed order of the president of Armenia. The first person to be awarded this prize was the former general director of Intel corporation Craig Barrett.
In Zvartnots airport Steve Wozniak was met by Armenian fans with flags with the Armenian flag colors and the Apple sign. Some of the fans had t-shirts with the Apple logo, and even one of them gave an apple to Steve Wozniak.
Steve Wozniak visited Synopsys scientific and research center, its education department and met with students. “Technologies create big things from small things. Everything is about small micro-schemes that are operating big things. Steve Jobs and I started everything without money. We were thinking what e could create without spending money. When we were starting it, we did not think that this would bring money to us. One should have big courage and braveness to make change in the world,” said Steve Wozniak during the meeting.
Steve Wozniak also gave a press conference. Speaking about the future technologies he said, “We should always think about creating something new, we should always look deeper to imagine how you would like to see things in the future. For example, one should have a look at the unit and think about what he likes and what does not like in it. After that you start to see what you would like to see changed in it. What is more important – the human being or the technology? If the man is more important, technologists should think about how they can improve things to make the man live better and like a man. The greatest inventions in technology in the world have taken place as a result of interaction of the man and technology. Our mobile phones now have both eyes (cameras) and feelings (touch sensors), as well as sight and speech. Everything is like with men. Mobile phones can even track our location. The human being is moving toward creation of the real nature and every day we are getting closer to making the technology and people friends. Nowadays computers are behaving as we like but not us as they want.” In answer to a question whether sky technologies have future Wozniak said, “Sky technologies are considered the latest tendency. People think that if they trust in them, they will not use their information, there will not be any need to update the programs and they will be accessible for users. Of course, those are good for storing information, but now when I’m saying to my phone ‘call my friend’, the phone accesses sky servers, takes my friend’s information and calls them. But for me it is boring. Maybe I don’t have that large connection in order to connect from one server to another, or, if now I entrust my facebook’s information to the sky technologies, does it turn out that I am the one to control my information or somebody else’s server? I think sky technologies have a long way to pass for development. It would be better if our facilities could serve us without the skies.” Wozniak says that he has Polish and German origin. He has promised to tell people about Armenia when he is back home to the Silicon Valley and call on companies to establish education centers like the one that the Armenian Synopsis has created. By the way, the people of Yerevan were very surprised to see the co-founder of Apple computer corporation not with bodyguards and luxury cars but with a scooter. It was the first time that the people of Yerevan saw a man near the buildings of the government at the Republic Square, who was wearing expensive suit and was riding on scooter.