NAB is here! Do you find it a little odd that the National Association of Broadcasters meeting would be such an eagerly-awaited event for Apple-watchers everywhere? It just goes to show you how strong a presence Apple has in the content creation field-- and how much potential lies in QuickTime. After all, that's what we're really waiting for-- version 4.0 of the multimedia architecture that slices, dices, cuts through tin cans, and still makes fabulous Julienne fries. QuickTime 4's killer new feature is the ability to stream live video, in much the same manner that Microsoft's NetShow and Real's RealVideo do. However, Apple's streaming solution will allow the streaming of live video to any application that supports QuickTime-- in much the same manner that the competition, um, does not.

So despite a live demo of streaming QuickTime almost a full year ago, here we all are, still waiting for the software's release. Remember back in November, when it was definitely going to be released at last January's MacWorld Expo? Heck, no less an authority than Steve Jobs himself publicly stated that fact as late as mid-December. Instead, all we got was another streaming video demo, this time from a G3 running Mac OS X Server to fifty iMacs at once. Impressive, yeah, but still not done. And while this week's NAB seems like the absolutely perfectest venue at which to launch QuickTime 4 as a finished product, sources everywhere say it's just not going to happen-- QuickTime 4 is still in beta. But that doesn't mean you can't use it.

According to Apple Insider, Apple's decided to release beta 21 of the long-awaited software as a "public preview." We have no doubt that reckless types with nerves of steel will leap at the chance to be Apple's unpaid beta testers, but personally, we at AtAT are just a little wary of so-called "preview releases." Making unfinished software available to the public is a slippery slope, no matter how close the beta is to golden master status; if it's not ready enough to be called "done," there's a risk in sending it out for public consumption. Heck, at least Apple hasn't gone totally Microsoftian and decided to charge customers for the privilege of being a guinea pig... We suppose we should just be happy that QuickTime 4 is going to be available in any form this week.

"Holy cats, they really did it!" That's the only reaction we could muster when we heard about Micro Conversions' latest scheme to transform Apple's iMac into a killer gaming machine. Not that MC's any stranger to the iMac; these are the guys who took an idea we kicked around a whole week before the original iMac even shipped and turned it into a reality: a Voodoo-based card that fits into the iMac's proprietary Mezzanine slot and bestows the joys of high-powered 3D gaming upon the owner. MC's iMac Game Wizard does just that, using a killer Voodoo 2 chipset that, according to many, still produces faster and prettier gaming results than even the RAGE 128 in Apple's latest G3s. There's just one teensy little problem with the iMac Game Wizard, though-- since it uses the Mezzanine slot, owners of fruit-flavored iMacs are out of luck. Only the Bondi units have the Mezzanine connector.

And yet that didn't stop the folks at MC from crafting a Voodoo 2 solution for fruit-flavored iMacs, too. Get this: the new iWizard™ line of products actually tweaks your iMac in multiple ways to squeeze the best possible gaming experience out of your favorite diversions. MC will boost your iMac's processor speed, pop in an ADB port to allow the use of older joysticks, modify the audio system so you can add a subwoofer, and install a Game Wizard to provide Voodoo 2 acceleration. But here's the real kicker-- if you've got a fruit-flavored (and Mezzanine-challenged) iMac, send it in to MC and they'll install the slot before installing the card. Sure, this all voids the living bejeezus out of your iMac's warranty, but MC will sell you a warranty extension that covers the whole iMac, not just the parts they've installed or changed. And since they're going to rip your poor iMac open and muck with its innards, they'll also sell you memory and hard drive upgrades "as a convenience."

There's no cost listed yet, and the program doesn't start until May, but we've got to hand it to MC-- thinking doesn't get much more different than this. Even non-gamers may want to have their iMacs "iWizarded," to take advantage of a faster machine, better sound, the ability to use that old ADB keyboard/mouse/graphics tablet (without the potential for driver problems that might arise with a USB-to-ADB converter), etc. And owners of fruit-flavored iMacs who want to add SCSI, well, if MC can install a Mezzanine slot, what's to say that others can't, as well? Or get the iWizard treatment, uninstall the Game Wizard and give it to a Bondi-owning gamer, and pop in the Mezzanine card of your choice, to get SCSI, a monitor-out port, or whatever. The possibilities are intriguing.

Finally, a quick note about the passing of the EvangeList. If you're one of the 40,000 subscribers who received the Final Message last week, you already know this, but the EvangeList, Guy Kawasaki's pro-Apple mailing list, went out with a whimper after three solid years of keeping the faith-- and, for better or for worse, of unleashing a torrent of electronic flame-mail upon any journalists (and "journalists") who dared to bad-mouth the platform or neglect their Mac homework. In the words of Guy Kawasaki himself, "the original purpose of the EvangeList was to counteract the negative news about Apple and Macintosh." Given that said negative news is largely a thing of the past, Apple decided to retire the EvangeList. At last check, we couldn't even access the web site.

To a certain extent, we agree with Apple's decision; for one thing, sometimes the EvangeList did more harm than good, simply portraying Macintosh users as a mindless cult ready to storm the castle at a mere word from King Kawasaki. For another, the content of the EvangeList had really started to slide lately, and even great shows need to know when to call it quits. For example, consider the final, oh, eight seasons of Married... With Children-- the dreaded "Jefferson Years." Then there's Melrose Place; despite its dubious campy charm, can anyone believe it's only now just getting around to finishing up its lifespan? And just how old are those "kids" on 90210? (Fox, in particular, seems to suffer from "run it 'til it drops, keep pushing it 'til it stinks" syndrome.)

That said, for those of you a wee bit concerned about the future of AtAT, since its original intent was largely the same as the EvangeList's, fear not-- we're not going anywhere until someone cuts the power to our studios. Sure, Apple's in a much less er, "dramatic" position than it was back in 1997 when we first started chronicling the soap opera, but even a prosperous Apple generates more drama than we know what to do with. So don't worry; by the time we're through spouting off at the keyboard, we'll have made 90210's final season look fresh and exciting. And oh yeah, we'd like to give the EvangeList a big posthumous thanks for being there when AtAT announced its premiere episode. We'll miss the ol' 'List, yes we will.