It is hard to live under a cloud and work for a company that is slowly fading away. Apple is fighting hard and going somewhere and talented people like to work for such a company. The campaign has been clever and strategic in it's approach. First it sought, through the use of well known creative characters, to build up a positive image of the company and then went on to push specific products and their advantages. Get them interested and then let them know how they can act on this interest and why doing so would be an advantage to them.
Advertising is extremely important.
The cleverest companies with the best products can fail if no one knows about them and Apple had the added disadvanage of being pounded by the press at the time. Apple's advertising efforts have paid off well. What the character of the comeback will be and how Steve Jobs will continue to be involved has yet to be determined. The people at Apple have worked hard and their efforts show in both the quality and character of the company's products and the positive balance sheet. Apple has come out of the woods and is at the edge of the clearing, it will be interesting to see in the next few years where it goes from here.