Jim, you weren't supposed to post that where Paul could see it! NOW how are we going to keep him off the street and out of trouble? Quick! Tell him he has to write lots of code to make coffee. - Bruce Lewis
"You've already voted for someone for this category within the last 24 hours!" - No I didn't! - Tobias Boonstoppel
I've never voted (online) this is my first time. - directeur
I'm having the same problem Tobias... I voted for one category and it seems to have blocked me from voting in any other category. :( - Michael Leggett
Only one member of our household has been able to vote. Others get the "You've already voted..." message. Different people on different computers, but same internet connection. Tried again today, but apparently need to wait a full 24 hours (supposedly you can vote once a day). - Anne Bouey
"Francis said in a statement that “the US government should actively support the adult industry's survival and growth, just as it feels the need to support any other industry cherished by the American people." “We should be delivering [the request] by the end of today to our congressmen and [Secretary of the Treasury Henry] Paulson asking for this $5 billion dollar bailout,” he told CNN Wednesday. Flynt and Francis concede the industry itself is in no financial danger — DVD sales have slipped over the past year, but Web traffic has continued to grow. But the industry leaders said the issue is a nation in need. "People are too depressed to be sexually active," Flynt said in the statement. "This is very unhealthy as a nation. Americans can do without cars and such but they cannot do without sex."" - Bret Taylor
via Bookmarklet
"Max, re #1 what I mean that the element of surprise is gone and there's more
chance that the rumors (true or false) will create disappointment.
In terms of public faces, none of those folks are permitted to engage online
and that's Apple's loss as well as the worlds. Feels antiquated when you
stack it up against Comcast Cares the Dell crew on Twitter and other
innovative uses of the medium. Apple should turn the Geniuses loose and let
them engage online." - Steve Rubel
Steve, do you use something like Fluid to make your Web apps feel more desktop-like or do you do everything directly in the browser? - Robert Clockedile
via Nambu
I use the browser, currently Safari. - Steve Rubel
via IM
Steve, I agree that Apple should engage with their fans more. They could probably convert a lot more people into fans at the same time. Their secrets are no longer secrets, that is probably why they ware no doing Macworld any more. - Shawn Hickman
"Adam, my needs are limited - but you are right, all webware has a way to go.
I would never lay out a newsletter in Google Docs. That's why I still use
PowerPoint. The web versions of presentation software are not ready for
prime time." - Steve Rubel
"Robert, thanks. I am referring less to the specific event or products than
just what Apple is facing overall. The landscape today is very different
than it was even a year ago and Apple needs to adjust. We'll see if they do.
They're not wired that way culturally." - Steve Rubel
"Kris, I totally agree. And that's because, culturally, they're not equipped
to handle it. They're too top-down. Microsoft and others are more matrixed.
Just by the fact that you are here commenting is a testament to Microsoft's
progress over the last five years." - Steve Rubel
It's gotten to the point where if Steve Jobs doesn't fly in with a cape and announce the iTime Machine, Apple has FAIL-ed. I am glad they are done with MacWorld. - Rolf Schewe
Every keynote is a disappointment if your expectations are set way too high. This is actually what I expected... I still think we're going to see a speed bump on the mac minis soon - Bwana
The iLife announcements got me excited, at least! - Andy DeSoto
Newsflash: Macworld is dead, Apple is not. Expect big announcements soon at other venues. BTW, the timing of Macworld was never good for back-to-school and the Christmas season, which is Apple's bread-and-butter. You need about 6 months lead time for these, so expect more announcements in March-July. - Chris White
@Chris: I agree. The product cycles have to better coincide with the business/consumer buying cycles. MacWorld was like Christmas shopping in January. Made no sense. - Rolf Schewe
I hate to tell you guys, but Apple's innovation run is over for now. Innovator's dillema. - Steve Rubel
via IM
it takes time to build great products - it's a bit unfair to expect a bang every 6 months! - Joelle Nebbe
There's been nothing breakthrough out of Apple since the iPhone debut two years ago. Even the app store is the work of the development community. - Steve Rubel
via IM
They failed even with the incremental, non-innovative stuff. Put faster processors / graphics cards in the Mac Minis and iMacs - no brainer - even Dell can do better. There better be a "silent" update in a few weeks. - Jason Kaneshiro
Steve, what are the other breakthroughs from other companies since then? - Chris White
Cristo, Google is innovating like crazy. And, to be fair, so is HP, Lenovo and Nintendo. (Note HP is a client) - Steve Rubel
via IM
@Cristo Look at Gmail Labs or Google Docs. Tons of innovation - Steve Rubel
via IM
Who needs mojo when you got one of the slickest marketing shops around. - Alex Scoble
Steve, I don't see those as comparable to major OS or hardware releases. I think people who've grown up on Internet time are getting a little spoiled on how long it takes to create truly innovative products. - Chris White
Even Leopard didn't have the same rate of innovation that Tiger did. Look, I am a huge Apple fan. Ask anyone. But look under the hood beyond RDF and you will see what I mean - Steve Rubel
via IM
Steve, I'm not disagreeing about Leopard vs Tiger. I'm just saying that things go in cycles, and Apple has not fallen behind anyone yet in terms of innovation. We will see in the future, but if there was a GoogleWorld or any other world right now, you probably would be disappointed with that also. - Chris White
I would expect to see more frequent updates from Apple, rather than the big two we've historically seen. Especially now, it will be a way for Apple to get more attention on the rest of the management team. - Logical Extremes
Apples (no pun intended) and oranges. You can't compare Google and Apple on these merits. Their only overlap is with Android. I see big things from Snow Leopard with Grand Central and Open CL regarding performance and efficient use of system resources. The keynote is what was expected. Anything else was fantasy. - Rolf Schewe
Christo, I agree - they're not behind. But they are vulnerable. - Steve Rubel
via IM
one lame keynote does not a mojo losing company make - Steve Mann
via twhirl
Vulnerable to what? Windows 7, which is Vista Plus? Blackberry Storm? Netbooks? I don't want a "cheap" laptop. Zune? iTunes just made a huge power move. Don't see it. I see the opposite. Next year, at non-MacWorld events, we will see a ton of new products. New iPhones, Mac Pros, Next-gen Apple TV, etc., etc. - Rolf Schewe
@Rolfe Vulnerable to missing the big turn. iLife wont be necessary soon. Web apps are the future and Apple is notoriously weak here. Two words: Mobile Me. - Steve Rubel
via IM
Steve, I don't think Apple cares. If web apps get really good, then Apple hardware will run them best. For me, there are still lots of client apps I use, including xcode, sketchup and photoshop. - Chris White
I think MobileMe is vaporware in it's current manifestation. It was DOA. I agree with Google - Rolf Schewe
Bwana, I thought so, yes. Will you stop using Google Docs (assuming you do)? Plus there's no iPhone access - that I saw. They should stick to hw/sw not web apps. - Steve Rubel
via IM
I don't use Google Docs. Never understood the need, even when I worked at Google. I don't mind syncing my data with the cloud, but I want to own it. Not saying I love Apple's applications either, but I'm not against client apps. - Chris White
Cristo, do you use any web apps? Flickr? Photoshop.com? That's where the innovation is today (Note Adobe is a client) - Steve Rubel
via IM
.mac--lame. MobileMe--lame. By association: iWork.com--lame. - Rob Michael
Steve, there's lots of innovation today, including the way we're communicating right now. And yes, I do sync data with the cloud, including Flickr, but I also like using Aperture for editing photos. - Chris White
I don't think web apps will reach mass adoption in 2009 and I believe Apple is making the right choices. With that said, I will reserve judgement on iwork.com and the other offerings until I use them. Overall, I think we're overreacting here. - Bwana
I also use Apple Mail for my gmail accounts. I don't think there's any particular purity in just using the web as an interface for computing. I realize it's been in vogue for the last few years, but I see it as just one way to interact with computing, and not necessarily superior in all ways. - Chris White
Bwana, it's the Internet, are you new here? It's millions of miles of interconnected fiber, copper, silicon, and electrons with the soul use of pornography and over-reacting to things. - Matthew DeVries
I think MobileMe is vaporware in it's current manifestation. It was DOA. I agree on your online apps point. Google is making a lot of headway. Not sure how it will pan out in the long-run. Xbox 360 has made some interesting inroads to the living room while all this is going on. I don't know what the future holds. Tech-centic people like ourselves will not determine the future. Regular people will. - Rolf Schewe
I think iWork.com is on the right track, although I'm not a fan of charging for the service. I still don't have web access on most of my flights or bus rides and still have to pay for it at a good portion of hotels and airports. I want to edit and store on my machine first and foremost. - Greg
I liked what I saw. Improvements to products I use and can afford. What did you expect? No wonder Apple is pulling out of MacWorld. The level of expectation is absurd. - Howard Keziah
I don't like how there isn't an upgrade price option for iWork 09. All the major software has an upgrade price, this should be no different. Granted its not expensive compared to FCP, there should still be some benefit to being a previous customer. - Justin Wah Kan
I'm ok with price structures adjusting to that upgraders pay more while new adopters pay less. One price to rule them all. - Matthew DeVries
Look, I'm typing this on my new Macbook with an iPhone few inches away, but I honestly believe that Anti-Social MobileMe is just a wrong direction, lack of vision if you prefer. I can't see anybody who regularly use modern social media be a user of MobileMe. The only good thing about that service is a Push, but for how long? Better yet, they launched iWork.com which makes even less sense to me (can't edit docs online, but only share them with, if you're lucky, 2-3 people you know who has iWork09). - Dias
I'm not sure why MobileMe gets compared to social media. As far as I can see, social media is about facilitating global conversation. MobileMe does nothing in that area, and is instead about providing convenience for people who have more than one mac. I have two of my own, and have at various times had a third one at my workplace, and it's been very useful in that context. It is quite flawed, but as yet there isn't a real alternative. - Robin Barooah
And as far as innovation is concerned. I think the battery improvements will make a huge difference as they roll them out across the line (once people have got over complaining about them), and will be tricky for competitors to counter. Also, I've tried iWork.com. It works smoothly, and is immediately obvious for a newcomer to understand, unlike google docs. And after that poor launch of MobileMe, I imagine they want to underpromise and overdeliver. - Robin Barooah
Steve, this meme is right up there with "John McCain just won the election" when he announced Sarah Palin as his running mate. Apple's model of innovation isn't to be the first, it's to evaluate emerging markets and figure out how to best to dominate them. Outside of email, name one area where apps in the cloud outsell desktop apps. Eventually, that may start to change and you can bet Apple will be there with something that changes the game. - Kevin Pedraja
@Kevin I can't be right all the time. That would make me - Obama! - Steve Rubel
via IM
Great thread. I expected little from this Macworld, and got a little more than I expected. Overall, I'm satisfied. (Except for the fact that I don't actually *have* the new MacBook Pro on my desk at the moment.) Steve, you say Apple hasn't innovated much in two years, since the iPhone. First off, I disagree -- the App Store was brilliant. But even if you're right, what big innovation did they have between the iPod and iPhone? iPod video maybe. IOW, going 2+ years between major innovations is nothing new. - Mitch Wagner
The thinnest 17-inch laptop and extended battery were good new innovations to me. It would be cool if Apple did actually show the MacBook Wheel!!!! - Alvin
Every time Apple doesn't live up to the completely over-inflated blogosphere expectations, everyone says Apple has lost its mojo. I've been watching Apple lose its mojo for about three years now, by my count. - Jeff Ventura
I liked the MacBook Wheel announcement better. - Nick Humphries
Still, most brands would want even half Apple's mojo! - Joe Buhler
True. Quite disappointed about the lack of Mac Mini news, after all that pre-Keynote noise... - Jordi Soler
@SteveRubel There's one big flaw in your pov: you are in the 10%, maybe 1% of the leading edge on using tech, talking to the rest of the leading 10%. 90% of the world is yet to grasp, buy and use this. In an effort to be way out in front, it is easy to forget Apple is designing for millions, not the futuristic 1% who act like 3g iPhones are from the 1950's. - Ed Shaz/NextInstinct
I disagree. If the trend holds for online videos popularity, the iMovie improvements coupled with affordable HD camcorders could be the sleeper hit from this year's keynote. - Brandon J. Mendelson