jeffrock:

During the Apple Fourth Quarter Results Conference Call, Steve Jobs made a rather curious redirection:

Audience question: Any updates on your stance on Flash?

Jobs: Flash memory? We love flash memory.

The gentleman that asked that question was obviously referring to Adobe Flash, which Steve Jobs infamously discredited in an open letter last spring. At a surface level, his cheeky retort seemed harmless enough. But it seems like it may not have been a joke. Check out the promo pages for the new MacBook Air. It’s covered with copy and images that, well, look like this:

Like the Ministry of Truth, it appears that Apple is deliberately attempting to usurp the meaning of the word Flash in the computing industry and redefine it. They’re tired of the word standing for an inefficient browser plugin. They’ve begun leaving Flash out of stock Mac OS X installs. They’re dodging its implied meaning in calls and pushing what they want it to refer to. Fast, efficient storage.

Down the memory hole, indeed.

Rafer sez:
Jobs is doing some sketchy stuff, vis-a-vis redefining “open,” et al. However, Flash is the longstanding private trademark of a pretty darn big company. If they can’t defend themselves by learning how to either ship a great version of this product or market decently, they deserve to be redefined and forgotten.