Inside Apple: How America's Most Admired and Secretive Company Really Works

3*

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Business Plus (January 25, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 145551215X
• ISBN-13: 978-1455512157
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 1 x 9.5 inches

Following the last book I read on Steve Jobs, I landed my hands on this book to read more about one of the most astounding company of this era.

This is quite a small book and elaborates further on what the general public already. It makes a good light reading and reinforces on certain principles Apples holds very closely to its core.

A few things that I have gleaned from this:
1. Do a few things but do them very very well. The entire suite of Apple's products can fit onto a conference table
2. Even the top leaders micromanages in Apple
3. From the outside, Apple looks like a great firm to work in. From the inside, it is true if you believe in being a slave to this great company.
4. Integrate everything but control everything.
5. Secrecy will help promoting the brand more than anything else as it will create conversation.
6. Own your own message and make others sing it for you.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

4*

• Hardcover: 656 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (October 24, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1451648537
• ISBN-13: 978-1451648539
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.9 inches 

I read this book shortly after the passing of Steve Jobs and it certainly gave an insight to how he was a person and the history of one of the greatest companies of this age. Some key things that I remember reading in this book.

• Jobs was given up by his birth parents and at a later part, gets reunited with his family somewhat
• He was a college dropout doing the things he loved to do.
• Taking drugs and being into Zen formed the basis of how he thinks and operate
• He was more of a marketing person than an engineering person
• GUI actually came from Xerox but Jobs capitalised on it. That shows that being first does not translate to being a winner. 
• Bill Gates was actually quite close to him. 
• Jobs was fired from Apple. Jobs was actually very hard to work with and has a very difficult personality. 
• He did not create Pixar but owned it and drove it to what it is today.
• Jobs died of cancer in part due to his obstinate personality. 
• After he came back to Apple, the first foray into music started the ball rolling. 
• His concept of having products as extension of the PC sparked the post-PC revolution. 
• He keeps everything tightly controlled and integrated. 

All in all, a cool book that is hard to put down.