Digital diviner who made computing personal- Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs, the 56-year-old iconic co-founder of Apple, breathed his last on Wednesday.

“Technology alone is not enough,” Steve Jobs, the 56-year-old iconic co-founder of Apple, declared last year while unveiling the iPad. “It's technology married with liberal arts, married with humanities, that yields the results that make our hearts sing.” On Wednesday, his own heart stilled as he lost the battle with pancreatic cancer; but the chord he first struck in his garage-based computer venture three decades ago by linking the drive for innovation with the consumer's desire for utilitarian technology will continue to move the world of computing and electronics for many years to come.

A pioneer who made Silicon Valley synonymous with entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and technological excellence, Jobs, launched Apple with his friend, Steve Wozniak, in 1976.

Jobs “died peacefully surrounded by his family,” his wife, Laurene, and four children, said in a statement. In a tribute, Apple said it had “lost a creative and visionary genius and the world [had] lost an amazing human being.”

Tributes poured in from around the world and fans flocked to Apple stores in several countries to mourn the passing of the “leading light” of the digital age, as one industry CEO described him. Flags flew at half mast at the headquarters of the company at Cupertino, California.

Steve Jobs was diagnosed with a rare form of treatable pancreatic cancer in 2003, and underwent surgery. He had a liver transplant six years later with doctors giving him an “excellent prognosis.” In August this year, Jobs stepped down as the CEO of Apple, making way for Tim Cook to take over. He declared that the day had come when he could no longer meet his duties.

U.S. President Barack Obama described Steve Jobs as among the greatest of American innovators — brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.

Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, said in a statement, “For those of us lucky enough to get to work with Steve, it's been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.”