Three hours left to go.
It feels like an eternity.
Join me after (and possibly during) the keynote for frantic updates and heated discussions. (Or, for what is more likely: a stream of unintelligible rants and raves about new hardware and software.)
P.S. There will be no live webcast (from Apple). However many sites will be posting live from the keynote audience. I will be getting my news feed from MacMerc. They’ve been good in the past.
Why is it that I often find myself attracted to women who serve me coffee? What is it about the barista that I find so alluring? I’m sure it has nothing to do with my caffeine predilection. It can’t be that these heroines of coffee feed my addiction… my drug. It’s not that they play with my dependancy. I just need one fix… from you. My beautiful savior… Giver of the lifeblood.
Whoa… I definitely think it’s time to switch to decaf.
The following follow-up is a list of all the MacWorld (this is the exact point in my blog entry where Sarah stops reading) rumors that I’ve been hearing about, and my personal evaluation of their accuracy. I realize, oh faithful reader(s), that you don’t care about this at all. Well damnit… I do. And, it will be fun to see how open my third eye is. My previous precognitive prediction proved to be profoundly pretentious (yea for alliteration!). Er… I was totally wrong. Second time’s a charm.
Flash-memory based iPod
Prediction: Probably
Reasoning: Apple needs this to keep their iPod line competitive across the board
Hardware Audio Interface (a.k.a. Asteroid?)
Prediction: Not likely
Reasoning: I just don’t see a big enough market for it. It’s more of a third-party, niche type of product. This device strays way too far from Apple’s product line… Although, so did the iPod at the time of it’s introduction…
iWork Office Productivity Suite
Prediction: Probably
Reasoning: In order to completely sever ties with Microsoft, Apple needs an app that will kick Office to the curb. There has been speculation in the past however, that Apple and Microsoft have some kind of unwritten, no competition contract concerning the Office product line. I don’t know if Apple can pull it off though. I hate to admit it, but Office is robust and usable… for a Microsoft product anyway.
$499 Headless iMac (a.k.a. the iHome)
Prediction: Probably
Reasoning: This would put the Mac in the entry level, first computer buyer category. It might make consumers think twice about that crappy-ass Dell and take another look at that slick Apple machine.
iPhone
Prediction: Not a chance in hell
Reasoning: Despite the adamant claims/rumors of people in the field and technical reports, I just don’t think that Apple would ever want to take the plunge into the cell phone market. It’s too unpredictable and unstable for Apple. What is likely however, is an iTunes integrated cell fone of some sort (we’ve seen pics already… but we’ll only know for sure after tomorrow’s keynote). That seems reasonable. But I doubt that we’ll ever see an Apple branded cell phone.
Did I miss anything? Well, aside from the inevitable software updates and processor upgrades, I think that’s it.
So what makes me such an authority. Well nothing really. I’m just a fan of the company and the product. I’ve watched the market and I’ve seen the consumer response. You can almost pick out patterns and predict the future if you watch closely enough. With Apple however, you never really know what’s going to happen. Sometimes they pull something out of their ass (like the iPod) that no one expects and no one has done [successfully] yet.
On a side note, I would love to see the rebirth of the Newton. Or rather, some kind of iPod sized pda device. Hard drive based, Firewire, Bluetooth, maybe wifi, highly integrated into the OS X experience… that would rock my digital world.
This Joy of Tech comic pretty much sums up what I was talking about a few days ago. Give it a read. Bookmark ’em too. That’s an order, soldier!
Anyway, so much new and exciting and interesting stuff is happening in my life right now. I’m finding it difficult to decide what to post about. So for now, you get the above link. Maybe after the coffee starts working I’ll be able to write something a tad more substantial. “But Sam,” you protest, “aren’t you at work? Shouldn’t you be doing what you’re being paid to do (whatever that is)?” The short answer is, “Yes, I should. But no, I won’t.” Now that I’ve got something good to look forward to, it’s becoming increasingly tough to concentrate on the here and now.
And now, a somewhat related piece of dialog from one of my favorite movies; Spaceballs:
Dark Helmet: What the hell am I looking at? When does this happen in the movie?
Colonel Sandurz: You’re looking at now, sir. Everything that happens now is happening now.
Dark Helmet: What happened to then?
Colonel Sandurz: We passed then.
Dark Helmet: When?
Colonel Sandurz: Just now. We’re at now now.
Dark Helmet: Go back to then.
Colonel Sandurz: When?
Dark Helmet: Now!
Colonel Sandurz: Now?
Dark Helmet: Now!
Colonel Sandurz: I can’t.
Dark Helmet: Why?
Colonel Sandurz: We missed it.
Dark Helmet: When?
Colonel Sandurz: Just now.
Dark Helmet: When will then be now?
Colonel Sandurz: Soon.
Grad School.
I’m in. I got the acceptance letter today.
Details to follow… as soon as I’m done smiling.
It’s early January. Here in Western Massachusetts, snow is falling lightly from the gray, comfortable sky. The leaf-less trees outside my office window are dusted with a fluffy whiteness… a cocaine-like whiteness. A whiteness that instills memories of an addiction that’s enough to make any ex coke-head writhe from the hammering pangs of withdrawal… or so I have read. Yep, here in Western Massachusetts, it’s snowing. I’m inside, overdosing on the caffeine from my third cup o’ the good stuff, bathing in the gorgeous radiation pouring forth from my oversized 21 inch displays, and trying to stifle my schoolgirl-like giddiness. You see, this is my most favoritest (shut up. that’s a word) time of the year. And, let me tell you why…
In less than one week, Mr. Steve Jobs (or Apple Daddy as I like to call him) CEO, Apple Computer, will take the stage at The Moscone Center in San Francisco for the Annual MacWorld Expo. The event is scheduled for January 11, at 9 am (12 noon, for us less fortunate inhabitants of the East Coast). I’m sure there will be a live webcast. I’ll post an update with the url when it’s available.
When Steve (can I call him that?) gives his keynote presentation, exciting things happen… magical things. Well, mostly new Apple hardware and software gets introduced. But damnit… that’s enough for me! That’s enough to make me and the rest of the cult (oh my, yes… we have achieved cult status) stay glued to our Quicktime stream for the duration of the presentation… caffeinated beverage of choice on hand… gotta keep our reflexes quick and attentive… wouldn’t wanna miss one word… what’s it gonna be? An iPhone? Reviving the Newton? Video iPod? G6 processor? The adrenaline taking over… can’t breathe… mustn’t blink… stay on target… wait for “Just one more thing…”
Oh, the anticipation! It gnaws at my cold, dead soul.
Anyway, stay tuned for more MacWorld related stuff. There’s a fistful of rumors on the internets. We’ll discuss those later. ‘Til then, let me leave you with my two fondest MacWorld memories:
When I lived in San Francisco, I just walked into the Expo… No entrance fee, no name badge, no problem. I honestly didn’t know that I was required to pay. Which I guess goes to prove that if you look like you know what you’re doing, you’re all set. This technique does not work however, when you walk into an Apple store, pick up an iMac G5 and promptly walk out. They’ll stop you every time… no matter how confident you look. Believe me, I’ve tried.
and…
When the 5gb iPod came out, I lusted for one massively. I held out though, insisting that larger capacity iPods were right around the corner. My pal Todd, a fellow Mac enthusiast and all-around tech junkie, put a burrito dinner on the line claiming that there would be no such announcement. Towards the end of his presentation, Steve did his usual nonchalant “Just one more thing.” And there it was… the 20gb iPod. I win! Who’s your daddy now, TK? (Oh… Todd and I have a similar bet going this year too. This time it’s about the iPhone rumors. Only time will tell)
The devastation caused by the Indian Ocean tsunamis is simply mind-boggling. I just gave a little bit to the American Red Cross, International Response Fund. If you can afford it, I encourage you to do the same.
Thousands of miles away, I feel almost powerless. I want to offer my assistance… This seems to be the best way.
It’s a great foot to start the new year off on… giving what you can to help those who have suffered a truly devastating tragedy.
Check it out. Fireworks (excuse the crappy fone-cam photo). Right outside of my apartment. My housemate, Sarah, summed it all up earlier when she said, “We definitely don’t pay enough to live here.” She’s right. This pad rocks. Right in downtown Noho. It’s dirt cheap too.
Anyway, I need to nap before the festivities begin. Happy New Year to all!
Wait… It just occurred to me that this is most probably going to be my last post of 2004. Crud. I need to write something more profound than this. Ok… I got it: Do you ever like, feel that this world is only like, a computer simulation and we’re all like totally plugged into it? And like, the real world is like, controlled by robots… that like, farm our life essence to fuel their world? It’s like we’re all part of some kind of like, matrix or something…
