I did work for Apple while he was there, and he was entirely decent.
I came to believe that there was a bratty entitled personality from his 20s that gave rise to most the jerk stories people reference, and that he wised up after being ousted (probably for being that jerk). He was essentially exiled for the better part of a decade.
The jerk was there from the beginning. A friend's mom was temp-hired by two young guys, both named Steve, to help them set up their first company office. She liked one of the Steves but declined the offer to join their new company as the first office manager because the other Steve was an a-hole.
I came to believe that there was a bratty entitled personality from his 20s that gave rise to most the jerk stories people reference, and that he wised up after being ousted (probably for being that jerk). He was essentially exiled for the better part of a decade.