What is "reality distortion field"

n. (context informal English) The persuasive ability of a charismatic leader

Reality distortion field (RDF) is a term coined by Bud Tribble at Apple Computer in 1981, to describe company co-founder Steve Jobs's charisma and its effects on the developers working on the Macintosh project. Tribble said that the term came from Star Trek. In The Menagerie episode, it was used to describe how the aliens created their own new world through mental force.

Later the term has also been used to refer to perceptions of Jobs's keynote speeches (or " Stevenotes") by observers and devoted users of Apple computers and products.