Odyssey: Pepsi to Apple...a Journey of Adventure, Ideas & the Future

Rating:
Summary: An inside view of the rise and fall of Apple
Review: Although out of date now this is a fascinating book that provides great (although not unbiased) insight into the early days of Apple Computer and development of the Apple II, Lisa and finally the Macintosh, the arrival of corporate-stiff John Sculley and the eventual tearful ejection of young, mercurial Steve Jobs. John Sculley's vanity is quite laughable and it provides a remarkable insight into a couple of the computer industry's prize egos. The decision to close new factories in Texas and retain old factories in earthquake-prone California is dismissed with little explanation (strangely corporations always do this -- the human factor). Apple generally gets a soft-ride from the press. Apple are hardnosed in blocking their competition and have let down partners (and some might argue their customers too) terribly on several occasions -- little of that is contained here though.

Rating:
Summary: Somewhere in between alright!
Review: It is hard to not want to read a book about how the founder of Apple was sacked by the guy he brought in himself, to lead the company. And that is precisely what the first part of the book is about. In a tale of roaring passion and excitement, we walk through pages in almost quivering excitement as we read about the stony-mahagony culture of Pepsi, the young irreverent west coast start-ups, the passion and idealism of youth, the quest for making a difference to the world, the heady mix of million dollar stock options and unruly aesthetic genius... and how it all culminated at the altar of capitalistic zeal and resulted in Steve Jobs being sacked by John Sculley and the board.

The second half of the book though, takes a downspin. From the exciting tale of the first half, where John Sculley's fleshing out his character is seen as contributing to the intrigue of the story, the second part of the book is more of trumpet-blowing. It deals with how Sculley and his team 'rescued' Apple and converted it to the company it is today. As such, the book is also made a little vexatious with Sculley's sermons of management that are intervowen between chapters.

Reco : Read the first half, skim through second half... But definitely worth reading if you're interested in the human side of business dealings!

Rating:
Summary: Still interesting after all these years
Review: John Sculley had a very close friendship with Steve Jobs. He was wooed to Apple, and when he got too close to Steve and found out he had created a monster, it was almost too late. He did do much to help Apple's fortunes, and yet in the chapters not found in the book, found his own demise. His words about Steve Jobs are still prophetic as ever, and still just as pertinent. His relationships with board members and those creators who worked at Apple are wonderful. In hindsight, Gil Amelio should have read this book, because he too was taken in and taken over by Steve Jobs. While Jobs will always be affiliated with Apple, its really the others mentioned in the book who are the heroes that Sculley learned to appreciate when Jobs was ousted for not bringing the idea of the Macintosh Office to reality. That in effect is where Sculley really showed his worth to the company. While discussing technology long obsolete, the excitement of giving birth to those projects and products is still worth your time to complete the Odyseey that Sculley brings forth.

Rating:
Summary: Still interesting after all these years
Review: John Sculley had a very close friendship with Steve Jobs. He was wooed to Apple, and when he got too close to Steve and found out he had created a monster, it was almost too late. He did do much to help Apple's fortunes, and yet in the chapters not found in the book, found his own demise. His words about Steve Jobs are still prophetic as ever, and still just as pertinent. His relationships with board members and those creators who worked at Apple are wonderful. In hindsight, Gil Amelio should have read this book, because he too was taken in and taken over by Steve Jobs. While Jobs will always be affiliated with Apple, its really the others mentioned in the book who are the heroes that Sculley learned to appreciate when Jobs was ousted for not bringing the idea of the Macintosh Office to reality. That in effect is where Sculley really showed his worth to the company. While discussing technology long obsolete, the excitement of giving birth to those projects and products is still worth your time to complete the Odyseey that Sculley brings forth.