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'Twas the night before Expo

... and all through the house, not a creature was stirring except for Steve's mouse."Quick, change that keynote slide, he's got it all posted.""And you'd better do it quick or your ass is toasted!"
Written by Jason D. O'Grady, Contributor

... and all through the house, not a creature was stirring except for Steve's mouse.
"Quick, change that keynote slide, he's got it all posted."
"And you'd better do it quick or your ass is toasted!"
The night before Expo is kind of a weird time, there's a kind-of quiet before the storm type of feeling but it's hard to take advantage of because the ether is buzzing with everyone's predictions and conjecture about what his Steveness is going to announce.
I broke an interesting little piece on the PowerPage about Apple plasmas coming to Expo on Friday and while I really believe the Sandwich Guy's story, I still have questions:

First, why plasma over LCD? The simple reason is cost. LCDs get absurdly expensive at larger sizes whereas plasmas plateau. Others say that screen burn-in will be a problem with a plasma, but the reality is that this can easily be dealt with in software. Sure lifespan is shorter with plasmas (you can't replace the bulbs like you can in an LCD) but you're not supposed to leave it running 24/7 without a screensaver or power-saving. Again software will take care of that.

Second, the name. What's this puppy going to be called? iMac 50-inch? iTheatre? iTV?

Third, the color. Please don't make them white! They should to be black or at least aluminum like the current Cinema displays.
Anyway, security is extra high on the show floor at Expo and word is that Apple hired their own private security firm to guard the booth. Even employees aren't allowed anywhere near the booth, t-shirts or anything until after the keynote address is over. Only Apple's A-team of insiders and engineers (12-16 people plus a few key execs) is allowed in the booth during setup) all of the other employees get briefed from the keynote stage, like the rest of us.
I'm wondering about the whole presentation of the plasmas, will they be unvelied during the main event or will Steve hold them for his famous "One last thing..." slide? And where's he going to hide them on stage? Since my little story on Friday, people will be looking around for them on stage, he certainly can't hide a 50-inch plasma in his pocket (like the nano) or on the desk (like the Mac mini). My guess is that it will rise up from the center of the stage (like the G5 tower did? Or was it the iMac?). Anyway, theatrics is part of his specialty, so I'm sure it will be good.
Also, will Intel President and CEO Paul S. Otellini take the stage to tout the Apple partnership and promote the use of Viiv technology? The smart money is on yes, Steve loves to have fellow CEOs on stage to share in the limelight. But not too long though Paul, Ok?
Stay tuned for Macworld coverage both here and on the PowerPage, I'll be posting during the day on whatever server stays up longer.

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