Anecdotally speaking —

Steve Jobs was a “noticer” who could be harsh at times, sensitive at others

New anecdotes bring new details, like he was "really, really, really good 1-on-1."

Steve Jobs was a

Plenty of ink has been spilled since former Apple CEO Steve Jobs passed away almost one year ago. The official biography by Walter Isaacson tips the scales at nearly 600 pages and revealed plenty: Jobs regretted not having life-saving cancer surgery earlier. He was livid over Android's purported copying of iOS. And Jobs was often driven to tears at what could seem like the drop of a hat.

And the retrospectives didn't end there. Former collaborator Ken Segall, who served as creative director for TBWAChiatDay, wrote his own book about his experiences with Jobs. That included outrageous Jobs ideas like naming the iMac the "MacMan," or having a Willy Wonka-style contest so one lucky iMac buyer could tour Apple's corporate headquarters. And PBS contributor Robert X Cringely dug up old interview footage from 1995 in which Jobs waxed philosophical about programming, craftsmanship, software, and the Web.

But there are as many facets to Jobs' person as there are prototypes of each iPhone revision. And Forbes recently collected several anecdotes about Jobs, which may help paint a more accurate portrait of the equally revered and reviled man.

For instance, Jobs is known for being brash and terse when discussing what he perceived as faults in other's work. He wasn't afraid to speak his mind, even when talking with potential clients. When pitching IBM to license the NeXTStep software for its OS/2 line of computers, Jobs told IBM executives that "your user interface sucks."

And Jobs' attention to even the smallest detail is legendary. Former NeXT PR executive Emily Brower Auchard noted that she once had to buy a new pair of shoes when she accidentally wore two mismatched shoes to work one day, because Jobs was a "noticer" that could swiftly pick up on any flaw.

"One of my tasks was to sit in press interviews with Steve and take notes," Auchard told Forbes. "Once before an interview, I realized that I was wearing two different shoes. I had dressed quickly that morning and had grabbed what I thought were a pair of black pumps. They weren't. So I drove like a maniac to the Stanford Mall and bought myself a pair of replacement shoes at Nordstrom and then sped back to NeXT’s offices. It was the fastest shopping decision I ever made."

But Jobs could be "really, really, really good one-on-one," according to one former business associate. So when former head of T/Maker Heidi Roizen's father died, Jobs rushed over to her house to console her.

"He asked me to talk about my father, what was important about him, what I loved best about him," Roizen said. "I will always remember and appreciate what an incredible thing he did for me in helping me grieve."

And when former marketing guru Regis McKenna discovered that the iMac he bought for his granddaughter as a Christmas gift in 1998 had a faulty optical drive, Jobs made sure it was replaced right away.

"After using it a few hours, the disc drive door would not open," McKenna explained. "The dealer told me he was not authorized to exchange the computer for another one due to an Apple policy. I sent an e-mail to Steve and asked him about Apple’s return/exchange policy on a new product. Within five minutes my phone rang. It was Steve. He asked me what the problem was and the name of the dealer. 'I'll call you back,' he said. A few minutes later the phone rang and it was a very apologetic dealer. 'I have a new iMac here for your granddaughter,' he said."

The full Forbes piece is a bit lengthy, but highly recommended for anyone with more than a passing interest in Jobs.

Channel Ars Technica