Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced in January that he was taking a leave of absence from his duties for health reasons, but that he would still be involved in "key decisions." Now word has surfaced that Mr. Jobs is, in fact, doing exactly as he promised as was even involved in the user interface changes for the upcoming iPhone 3.0 software update, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Apparently, Mr, Jobs is working from home where he is safely tucked away from prying eyes. Despite his shift away from the Apple campus, Mr. Jobs has been involved in decisions for new products, including a portable device that's bigger than an iPhone, but smaller than a MacBook.
Mr. Jobs announced in January that he was taking a temporary leave of absence and would return to his regular duties in June. The dynamic CEO had been the focus of analyst and media speculation because of his health due to his pancreatic cancer battle in 2004.
At the time, he said "Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well. In addition, during the past week I have learned that my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought."
COO Tim Cook was saddled with Mr. Jobs's duties during the leave of absence. The company has remained quiet about Mr. Jobs's activites, although company spokesman Steve Dowling did comment "Steve continues to look forward to returning to Apple at the end of June."