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Analysts Assess Apple As It Tries To Move On Without Jobs

CUPERTINO (KCBS) – The question many people asked following Wednesday's surprise resignation by Apple CEO Steve Jobs is what's next for the tech giant?

Short term, most analysts believe the company's path is almost certain, as Apple's product line is in place for the next 2-3 years.

Jobs will still be overseeing the company as the new chairman, but technology analyst Rob Enderle with the San Jose-based Enderle Group said that position is inherently a hands-off job.

KCBS' Matt Bigler Reports:

"But recognize that he would have not stepped out of this job if he could actually play a major role at the firm," Enderle said.

The new CEO, Tim Cook, is considered by many analysts to be a brilliant logistics man who has served by Jobs' side. But he is not considered to be the "creative genius" that Jobs is and it remains a question whether anyone can fill those shoes.

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said that even he was amazed at Jobs' vision for technology.

>> Related Photo Gallery: Steve Jobs Through The Years

"There's really nobody like him," Wozniak said. "I smile when I think that when I was younger, I was hanging around and going around with this incredibly great person."

Apple was founded by Wozniak and Jobs in 1976.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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