On my return flight from Taipei, my China Airlines 747-400 made a stop in Osaka. As I transited through security I turned on my iPhone and received a text message from my daughter:  “Did you hear about Steve Jobs” it said. I knew what this meant, and I texted her back:  “Is he dead?” Jobs had been battling pancreatic cancer for years, and those who followed him and Apple knew his days on earth were numbered, but it still came as a shock.

Over 15 years ago, I had an employee who begged and begged me to buy her a Mac when her PC died, and I finally caved in. Within a year, I had converted the entire company to Macs. As we were a small company, this resulted in big savings, as we no longer needed an IT person.

Macs are self-sufficient. Small-business owners who convert and drink the Mac Kool-Aid know that they save money and time with Macs. They don’t get viruses and they hold up. If they crash, 99 percent of the time you have not lost your life. They are easy to back up — everything from files to photos, memories to music.

Adopted, and starting a computer company out of his garage, Jobs exemplified the American way. Young people should be taught about Jobs’ life; some say he may have been the genius of our age. As an end-user, Jobs I successfully launched Global Traveler with Jobs’ help, without needless IT concerns. I think Kimberly Krol’s blog of last week covered GT’s obsession with the brand.

iPhone, MacBook, iMac, iPad . . . the clamshell laptop was indestructible. Music, pictures, magazine design, editing — Jobs opened the world to new possibilities.

I have some Apple stock; I still drink the Kool-Aid, but our leader will be missed!

— Fran Gallagher, publisher and CEO