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Maybe No One Told Steve Jobs That “iPad” Sounded Like Delicate Sanitary Protection

by Rachel Sklar | 12:38 pm, January 28th, 2010

» 4 comments

Yesterday, the Internet scratched its collective head over the name of the new Apple iPad, because it reminded a lot of us of those handy absorbent paper products that many female gadget-owners use once a month.

“Are there any women in Apple marketing?” wondered Brew PR’s Brooke Hammerling.

“iPad? Where were the women when this name was discussed?” wondered NPR’s Alicia Shepard.

“How could they make such a silly, foolish, human error?” wondered Daily Intel’s Jessica Pressler.

“Heißt das #iPad so, weil iTampon schon vergeben war?” wondered @weltonline

Well, here’s a possible answer: Maybe someone did think of the awkward menstrual association. Even if there were no women involved — a distinct possibility — surely someone somewhere along the chain was a woman, or knew a woman. Or had seen a TV commercial promising smiling young ladies that they could swim, ride horses and jog on the beach while using their pinkly-packaged products. Maybe everyone involved knew that iPad was a….spotty….idea, but they didn’t say anything.

Because they were too afraid.

In his book “Borrowing Brilliance” David Kord Murray portrays Steve Jobs as something of a tyrant, who terrorizes Apple staff with his brutal, dismissive criticism. Here are some examples:

p. 188:

“His typical response to a new idea is “That’s shit.” The joke at Apple was never to discuss ideas with Steve on an elevator because your chances of having a job by the time you reached your floor weren’t very good. Employees started taking the stairs when he returned to the Boardroom at Apple after his ten-year exile. People with fragile egos didn’t work there. Not for long, anyway.”

p. 189

“Steve Jobs treated product designers and engineers at Apple to even harsher judgment. “That’s shit” was repeated over and over by Steve.”

p. 161, quoting from Jobs biography iCon by Jeff Young and Bill Simon:

“What made the job so frustrating for the team was Steve’s apparent total inability to overlook any detail of the project. He was a micro-manager to the nth degree. He cared passionately about the smallest of items. Eventually the final result was better for it; however, the path was torturous.”

Guess he overlooked one detail!

p. 188

“Working for him, I’m told by friends who have, is a nightmare. He rips on people and their ideas with little or no concern for feelings or consideration.”

So maybe people at Apple knew about the maxi-pad association, but no one had the guts to tell Jobs, in an elevator or otherwise. The Internet, of course, has no such qualms. Steve Jobs, your product reminds us of a maxi-pad. Ha ha, please don’t put it in the toilet!

Once again, because it’s fun, here’s Steve Jobs proudly introducing his new giant maxi-pad:

Both fabulous illustrations by Philip Bump.

iPad, iTampon, menstruation, Powerful Vaginas, Steve Jobs

JimW

Rachel, I don’t think this nasty piece is fun at all. A lot of really wonderful things have been written about Steve Jobs. I choose to believe he is an extraordinary genius and don’t really get your whole iPad/maxi-pad thing anyway. But thanks for reminding us that you’re an attorney, so were Tulkinghorn and Vholes of “Bleak House,” a much better book than “Borrowing Brilliance” or “iCon.”
FrankT

Rachel, Thanks for this very interesting research. No wonder Steve Jobs went through with
the awful name. JimW should see the reality, that not every great CEO is a saint.
The article was very fair. It is because we worship “public images” such as that of
Steve Jobs that we never learn their strengths and weaknesses.
In any event, it is true that a person’s greatest strength is also his/her greatest weakness.
Steve Jobs is very aggressive in pushing forward an innovation and breaking through
all obstacles. Those same qualities can browbeat all around him to fear telling him the
occasional truth that might have actually helped Steve Jobs not to become the butt of the
entire Internet’s jokes. Kudos Rachel. Keep up the great work!
JimW

Dear FrankT, quite the contrary to what you say, I don’t believe “any” genius is a saint. Picasso, Richard Wagner, Chopin, Trollope, Dickens, Beethoven, Salinger… I get weirded-out when those with far less talent write books about great people. David Kord Murray can portray Steven Jobs however he likes, but I don’t have to accept it as anything less than petty when he says of Jobs: “something of a tyrant, who terrorizes Apple staff with his brutal, dismissive criticism.” So what? Or Jeff Young and Bill Simon: “Working for him was a nightmare.” Edison was a nightmare too. The only brilliant thing about the Palmer biography movie of Wagner was Wagner’s music. Please read the bio in today times of Salinger, or better yet, read Thayer’s Biography of Beethoven who once threw a bowl of soup in a waiter’s face and would defecate in a pot and put it under his piano. I think all who work for Apple are well paid and receive all sorts of dividends, which by now, have made them very rich.
adamac

Yeah, it’s unfortunate that people here can’t see that. This is why the iPhone took off, and why , there’s an app for everything, websites in particular.
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