I'm glad a publication like Forbes is picking up on such internet phenomenon and setting things straight. We need this more than ever.
This is not much different than Steve Jobs vs. Dennis Ritchie.
This is not much different than Steve Jobs vs. Dennis Ritchie.
In fact there is no Steve Jobs vs Dennis Ritchie.Tesla vs Edison however was very real.
Beginnings of which have already been pointed out by that Facebook picture that went viral, the one that tries to contrast their contributions and their fame.
The viral facebook picture you cite is comparable to one saying that Ritchie was just stealing the innovations of Turing. Or that Ritchie was just a thief of the game changing ideas of John Backus.
At least Tesla and Edison were working in the same space at the same time frame on similar problems.
2. Think of the comparison as Engineer vs. Designer/Inventor(because this IS the legacy of Steve Jobs when looked at as a role model).
3. If you're REALLY hard pressed for details then...iOS is a descendent of Unix. Everything Apple runs on C.
I can appreciate why it could be difficult to abstract the two men to the level at which I make the comparison. But you must ask yourself why did someone, Forbes in this case, have to make the effort to set straight the details of Tesla vs. Edison when they are general knowledge to begin with. Why did that misleading poster promoting Tesla go viral? Its because details rarely matter. What matters is what Tesla and Edison represent - Edison is seen as rich and powerful while Tesla is the viewed as lost soul whose sole vice was science.
Tesla died alone and still in-debt. This fuels our current perception of a true scientist/engineer/maker, unadulterated by desire except for truth that is science. He is an inspiration.
Edison's practicality and willingness to use business (as a tool) to promote his work is not viewed kindly by posterity. Edison was also a great inventor but falls short, at least in our eyes, when contrasted against Tesla. Where did his practicality to invent of people rather than science come from? His first patent, an electronic voting machine, did not sell (because, I THINK, they could not fudge the numbers with it). So he resolved to only work on things that people want.
And thats really all there is to it.
It really boils down to one question: why didn't Dennis Ritchie achieve greater fame and money than earned by Steve Jobs? "Thats the way the world works" or any variant thereof is not an acceptable answer.