Cook’s deep knowledge of Apple’s operations and ready command of detail has won him the respect of the board of directors and the investment community. A bachelor with a passion for cycling, he’s as steady and low-key as Jobs is temperamental.

Of course, as any Apple employee will tell you, "steady and low-key" doesn't strike the necessary fear into their hearts like Jobs' legendary tirades.

Jonathan Ive, the wildly talented designer and crowd favorite for the role, is apparently even more soft-spoken, and too shy to carry the yoke of showman that he would inherit. However, secret plans not obtained by Valleywag have revealed Jobs' succession plans: A top secret project begun by Jobs while still at NeXT to take back Apple by force if necessary has been quietly resurrected by Ive, with Apple engineers working only on small parts so as not to reveal the true goal — an indestructable cyborg assassin capable of verbally abusing ten times the employees in a single day while still finding time to ignore his no-longer biologically related daughter.

I, for one, welcome my new Robot Steve Jobs overlords.

You also need some leadership skills. You don't want to be Tesla. He was one of the greatest inventors, but it's a sad, sad story. He couldn't commercialize anything, he could barely fund his own research. You'd want to be more like Edison. If you invent something, that doesn't necessarily help anybody. You've got to actually get it into the world; you've got to produce, make money doing it so you can fund it.

Page points out how many engineers have been hired by Big Oil to find every last drop of crude, calling it "disproportionate to the return that they could get elsewhere." A big proponent of geothermal and solar, he further describes how cleantech investment that has focused on the move from fossil fuels to electricity doesn't solve the root problem of our grid being powered mostly by coal. And in his view, venture capitalists are ten years too late in funding green initiatives:

Look at VC investment in clean energy. What caused that to happen was two things: the price of oil going up and global warming. It's mostly the price of oil going up.

I think it's everybody who cares about making progress in the world. Let's say there are 10,000 people working on these things. If we make that 100,000, we'll probably get 10 times the progress.

When I worked for Quittner at Business 2.0, he talked constantly about his long-held dream of going to a startup or launching a blog. That he's now choosing to stay at magazine publisher Time Inc. is useful as an economic indicator. Quittner boosted the Valley's comeback, and the business of blogging, long before other mainstream journalists. That he's turned bearish on both now could be a sign of personal cowardice. Or keen prescience.

April 16, 2008

To: TIME Staff
From: Rick Stengel

I'm delighted to announce that Josh Quittner is coming back to TIME to cover consumer technology with a regular column in the magazine and a daily blog on TIME.com. In his new role as editor-at-large, Josh will apply his singular voice to technology, writing both reviews of new products and features that explain what's most important to consumers in Techland.

Most recently, Josh was the managing editor of Business 2.0 and a writer for FORTUNE. He first had a byline in TIME in 1994 as a staff writer covering technology, back at the very beginning of the internet. He went on to launch "The Netly News," first as a website on Pathfinder and later as a column in the magazine. He subsequently served as editor of TIME.com—twice—as well as tech editor of TIME before moving to San Francisco in 2002 to work for Business 2.0. Prior to coming to Time Inc., Josh worked at Newsday in the early 90s, where he wrote a pioneering column called "Life in Cyberspace."

Josh will continue to work from San Francisco where he lives with his wife, journalist Michelle Slatalla (with whom he has co-written five books) and their three daughters, but I expect he'll be in the New York offices regularly. Josh is a great mind and a great brand to have back at TIME. We're fortunate to have him.

R.S.

The domain name now points to a blog that's been active since March 10. The writers are "Slatalla" — almost certainly Michelle Slatalla, Quittner's wife — and "Roofie" — presumably Quittner. The prose matches his voice, and the subject fits, since Quittner took an active interest in real estate while at Business 2.0. But real estate is a bread-and-butter subject for Time Inc.'s finance magazines. Josh, rather than starting your own blog, why don't you just apply for a job at Money, run by your former deputy Eric Schurenberg? That seems easier.

The author, Peter Elkind, has long been rumored to be working on a damning profile of Jobs, centering on backdated stock options. That Fortune is now leading off its story with Jobs's cancer, not the options scandal, tells us what happened to that story: Elkind couldn't get the goods. This is a cover story in more sense than one. An excerpt, courtesy of Fortune:

THE TROUBLE WITH STEVE

In October 2003, as the computer world buzzed about what cool new gadget he would introduce next, CEO Steve Jobs—then presiding over the most dramatic corporate turnaround in the history of Silicon Valley—found himself confronting a life-and-death decision.

During a routine abdominal scan, doctors had discovered a tumor growing in his pancreas. While a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is often tantamount to a swiftly executed death sentence, a biopsy revealed that Jobs had a rare—and treatable—form of the disease. If the tumor were surgically removed, Jobs' prognosis would be promising: The vast majority of those who underwent the operation survived at least ten years.

Yet to the horror of the tiny circle of intimates in whom he'd confided, Jobs was considering not having the surgery at all. A Buddhist and vegetarian, the Apple CEO was skeptical of mainstream medicine. Jobs decided to employ alternative methods to treat his pancreatic cancer, hoping to avoid the operation through a special diet—a course of action that hasn't been disclosed until now.

For nine months Jobs pursued this approach, as Apple's board of directors and executive team secretly agonized over the situation—and whether the company needed to disclose anything about its CEO's health to investors. Jobs, after all, was widely viewed as Apple's irreplaceable leader, personally responsible for everything from the creation of the iPod to the selection of the chief in the company cafeteria. News of his illness, especially with an uncertain outcome, would surely send the company's stock reeling. The board decided to say nothing, after seeking advice on its obligations from two outside lawyers, who agreed it could remain silent.

In the end, Jobs had the surgery, on Saturday, July 31, 2004, at Stanford University Medical Center in Palo Alto, near his home. The revelation of his brush with death remained—like everything involving Jobs and Apple—a tightly controlled affair. In fact, nary a word got out until Jobs' tumor had been removed. The next day, in an upbeat e-mail to employees later released to the press, he announced that he had faced a life-threatening illness and was "cured." Jobs assured everyone that he'd be back on the job in September. When trading resumed a day after the announcement, Apple shares fell just 2.4%.

Apple entertained no further questions about Jobs' health, citing the CEO's need for privacy. No one learned just how long Jobs had been sick—or that he had contemplated not having the surgery at all. "It was very traumatic for all of us," recalls one of those in whom Jobs confided, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the topic's sensitivity. "We all really care about Steve, and it was a serious risk for the company as well. It was a very emotional and very difficult time. This was one page in the adventure."

The woman in maroon is Facebook PR czar Brandee Barker. Here's what I want to know. Would Barker ever have agreed to being filmed for a video in which reporter Oliver Ryan and Fitzpatrick lay down slams like, "If I got the news that somebody had gone out and bought, say, a BMW 325, that would be great marketing." Or, worse, "[Facebook Beacon] might bring new types of advertisers into the Internet marketplace entirely." Harsh!

None of them want to say anything, though. Why? By playing the house sycophant, Kirkpatrick takes the pressure off the rest of Fortune's staff to write the bootlicking tech-CEO profiles he's known for — like his recent mash note to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Kirkpatrick's probing analysis of Zuckerberg? He's "nice."

Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if you're viewing this in an RSS reader, click through to view in your Javascript-enabled web browser.

Wedding Pages: Okay, you may have heard that Larry Page of Google is getting married. A friend of a friend of mine got this information via e-mail. The information did not include the bride's name (Lucy?) nor the location of the wedding. The wedding will be held on the weekend of December 7th. Some guests, depending on their location, will be leaving the evening of December 6th and others will be leaving the morning of December 7th. Guests will have the choice of leaving either the 10th or the 12th. A valid passport will be necessary for the event and it should be valid for more than 6 months after the event. (That last bit is a baffling.) You may remember that Sergey Brin married Anne Wojcicki earlier this year.

We haven't heard back from Serwer yet, so we're left with a host of questions: Did Google demand that Serwer take down the passage, and if so, why did he comply? Did the search engine scrub the older version from its Web cache? And why did CNNMoney, which host's Serwer's blog, not acknowledge the erasure with a correction, if it was wrong, or an editor's note?

For now, all I know is that the next time I see Larry Page on the cover of Fortune, I'm going to think about this incident — and ask myself what Fortune gave up to get him there.

Former B2 editor Josh Quittner, left, will get the title of executive editor, and Squires gives props to his tech chops in the memo. But Squires doesn't mention that as such, Quittner will be effectively outranked by his predecessor, Jim Aley, right, who departed B2 abruptly in 2002 to rejoin Fortune after Quittner arrived to take over the magazine. From what we hear, Aley, an assistant managing editor and the director of Fortune's technology coverage, will be the de facto boss of the tech-focused bureau, not Quittner. (Full disclosure: Before joining Valleywag, I worked for both Aley and Quittner at Business 2.0.)

The magazine is definitely shutting. Unconfirmed. The official line: Nothing's decided yet. Insiders, however, are behaving as if it's true. Freelancers have been told not to bother pitching stories for October and staffers are actively looking for other jobs. On the other hand, editor Josh Quittner is actively watching the "Save Business 2.0" Facebook group, which now has more than 1,500 members, including some high up in the Time-Life Building.

Even the September issue's not coming out. False. The paper's already bought, the printing plant's already booked, and subscribers are owed issues. Time Inc. wouldn't save any money by not printing it.

The vultures are descending. True. We hear Wired, Business 2.0's crosstown rival, has been trying to recruit from the magazine's ranks, as have other publications trying to staff up to cover the tech boom. Fortune, meanwhile, is hoping to retain some B2ers in the event of a closure to bolster its tech-reporting ranks. There's not, however, a definite list of B2 staffers Time Inc. intends to retain.

The office will be vacated August 3. False. Time Inc. has leased Business 2.0's offices at One California Street through 2010. Not clear, however, who will be occupying those offices. Some think it might make sense to put Time Inc. salespeople into the plusher digs at One California and move the journalists to Time Inc.'s drab cubicles in the nearby Embarcadero Center building.

Offers are coming in to buy the magazine. True. Since the Times published its article last week about B2's impending doom, more than a dozen potential buyers have expressed interest, some of them the predictable bargain-hunters but some respectable sorts. But Time Inc. management is in a no-win situation. If they sell Business 2.0 for a song, and someone else succeeds with the magazine, then they risk looking doubly stupid: First, for spending $68 million on the magazine back in 2001. And second, for not being able to turn a profit with it. For that reason alone, Time Inc.'s more likely to close B2 than sell it.

Here's the entire e-mail. For more on the story, read the Romenesko article at Poynter Online.

To: Time Inc. Staff
From: John Huey
Re: Staff Announcement

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Andy Serwer as managing editor of FORTUNE.

We all know that the world of business journalism has increasingly become a multi-media proposition, involving not only the magazine but its brand representations on the internet, on television and radio, wherever the reader wants his or her information. And no one is more qualified to lead FORTUNE on those multiple fields of battle than Andy.

He joined FORTUNE in 1985 as an intern from the Columbia Journalism School, and went on to become one of its most insightful, popular and productive writers. His work has ranged from his provocative column in every issue to major cover stories on everything from the young Michael Dell to Michael Price ("The Toughest S.O.B. on Wall Street") to the business of the Rolling Stones to the first look inside the financial and philanthropic workings of America's richest family, the Waltons.

Andy became one of our first internet stars nine years ago with his popular Street Life column. And in his spare time, Andy has also been the very successful business anchor of CNN's American Morning news show. He will continue to have an on air presence on CNN. No matter what project Andy takes on, he handles it with intelligence, wit and energy.

It is also safe to say that no journalist knows today's business story better than Andy Serwer. I am confident that he will bring his knowledge of both the story and the multimedia landscape to the helm of FORTUNE in exciting ways that will work to its great advantage in the future.

Andy is lucky to succeed Eric Pooley, who came to FORTUNE because of his very strong journalistic skills and storytelling abilities. He has delivered on those strengths in ways that have greatly enhanced the magazine and positioned it well for the future. He has made excellent hires, sharpened the magazine's coverage, updated its design, created new departments and lively new franchise issues, and shepherded great investigative tales, including the current cover story on the high drama behind Milberg Weiss's legal nightmare.

Eric, who previously edited Time Europe and before that was Chief Political Correspondent and Nation Editor of Time, is leaving FORTUNE and will be working with me and Jim Kelly on an assignment that plays to his strengths in investigative journalism.

Please join me in wishing both Eric and Andy well.

J. H.

Google stresses that any publisher can keep its books from being digitized simply by sending a list of titles to Google. But that's not good enough for Lynne Rienner...

Rather than compiling a list of her company's 1,200 titles ("a waste of my staff's time"), Rienner fired off an angry letter to CEO Schmidt. Google responded with a letter agreeing not to copy any of her books. Rienner is unmollified. She worries that she will be cut out of some future digital moneymaking opportunity. "Books are my unique content," she says. "I'm sure the smart people at Google are busy dreaming up all kinds of ways to make money off them."

Can we just say, "Oh my god, Magnum!" Repeat after us, Ms. Rienner: "Google could sell my authors' books for me." I hope none of Rienner's signed authors read that article; they might realize that she just cut them out of the only free marketing they'll ever get.

How Google can make - or break - your company [Fortune Small Business]
Earlier: Google Bitch #2: The Wispy Web Startup [Valleywag]
Earlier: Google Bitch #1: The Clueless Retailer [Valleywag]

Damn, don't you wish you got into Fortune every time you got a competitor? The magazine does a great job building Google as a bully, saying the company "makes no apologies for crushing small competitors."

Of course, by "crushing," Fortune means "launching a product similar to, but clearly less finessed than, and with shakier tech support." Landis's company, Mach5, may be complaining; meanwhile, leading analytics company Sitemeter is doing just fine despite the competition.

What did we learn from Google Bitch #2? If you can't take the heat, get out and stop bitchin'.

How Google can make - or break - your company [Fortune Small Business]
Earlier: Google Bitches Day: Celebrating "victims" of the world's biggest search company [Valleywag]

• Bloglines founder Mark Fletcher is leaving the RSS reader and diving into the conference scene. You'll probably — ugh — see him on a panel soon. [Personal blog]
• Brent Woodward is headed to prison. The exec from San Jose hardware company Lightwave Microsystems got two years for selling a backup tape full of his employer's trade secrets, joining the throngs of guys throughout history who got in trouble for indiscreet mix tapes. [Mercury News]
• Chicago-based superstar dev house 37signals is getting shot for an Apple Pro profile video (part of a series about sexy people using Apple stuff). [IM tip]
• And according to a Time Inc. press release, one of Wired's senior editors is moving to Fortune. Everybody else getting booted in the Wired staff shuffle had best get their game plans straight. [E-mail]

• Gee, Google's stock sure does fluctuate!
• "If the company can improve in search [...] the potential upside is dramatic." That's right! If Yahoo does its business better, it could earn more money! Are you taking notes?
• If Facebook went public, it might be a tad overpriced.
• Some companies make money without looking trendy.
• Akamai, which jumped to $345 in the 2000 and sank to 56 cents, is back up, trading at a 44 price/earnings ratio — wait, no, the bubble IS back.
• Comcast sucks. Buy it.
• Rupert Murdoch is a clever dude.
• Okay, go buy mutual funds. Pussy.
• So the trick here, the secret investor tip, is "Buy low, sell high." Seriously, why aren't we charging for this advice?

The boom is back [Fortune]

¬ One desktop is not enough for the might man. Bill uses three on his Dell.
¬ A personal assistant to filter non-contacts keeps his inbox to 100 e-mails a day.
¬ He calls the little notification box Outlook (or Gmail) uses, "the toast." Cute!
¬ Apparently, he's reinvented the wiki and named it SharePoint.
¬ As noted in Fortune's caption, Bill doesn't use much paper. Shocking!
¬ He wants to get a digital whiteboard. So now you know what to buy Bill for his birthday.

How I Work: Bill Gates [Fortune]

As opposed to just being offensive.

The sleeping giant goes on the offensive [Fortune]

100 Best Companies to Work For [Fortune]