I think Apple's other leaders are not as... rigid... as Jobs. Some changes that could happen after Jobs is gone:
1) Opening up to new markets (e.g. Verizon) and cooperation with other companies which Jobs supposedly avoids for personal reasons.
2) More customization allowed.
3) Less control over the App Store.
In other words, Apple will do fine. However, many fans will miss their Jobs' RDF fix.
Exactly what I think. Apple survived with or without Jobs in an industry where dozens, if not hundreds of companies never got past their first year.
As far as the Verizon angle, when Macworld caught up with him and tried to pin him down on if he was open to other vendors (in the US market, because there are six or more in other countries), he shut up like a clam.
Usually when Jobs has no comment and goes out of his way to stay quiet, it's pretty easy to read from his past actions that total silence means there is a bold move in the near future.
He was super quiet about the obviousness of an iBook or consumer laptop, and totally dodged any questions about a possible iMac utilizing LCD technology and a departure from the CRT one piece iMac which brought Apple from the red and into great net profits.
I think in Steve's remaining tenure at Apple, we will see a Verizon option, OS X on the iPad or at least a "mobile" OS X, and his personal re-entry into 3D cartoon-movie animation.
After Apple, I can see Jobs regaining his Hollywood producer moniker and cranking out a few more blockbusters. It's what accounts for 99% percent of his wealth, much of it Disney stock. Like Virgin's CEO, Steve Jobs is not destined to be a one trick pony and he still has a chance to be mentioned in the same sentence as a Gates or Buffett. Jobs made $100+ million on Apple alone and is headed in the right direction (from Apple, Next, Pixar, Disney, and other smaller holdings) to become a double digit billionaire.
