I don’t, for example, praise the inventor of the microwave every time I nuke a pair of Hot Pockets. A microwave isn't a very personal device. You don't hold it

I don’t, for example, praise the inventor of the microwave every time I nuke a pair of Hot Pockets. A microwave isn't a very personal device. You don't hold it in your hand or religiously carry it in your bag. You don't rely on it for communicating with people. It doesn't give you access to any new information or ideas. You interact with it for maybe a few minutes a day. You can't create new things with it. The admiration for personal technology is a lot closer to the reverence musicians hold for particular brands/models of instruments which is based on their build quality, their unique sound, their design, and many other intangible details. The connection people might feel to Jobs is probably based on the simple human experience of relating to people with similar ideas/views or the relationship people have with someone who influences their own way of thinking. I feel a deep personal connection with most of my favorite authors and musicians though I've never met most of them. You could easily marginalize them as people who have accomplished little more than putting words on paper or sound waves on tape but I would not agree with that at all because of the experiences I've had with their words & sounds.