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Browsers At The Ready (8/30/99)
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So the day is finally upon us-- Big Steve's Seybold keynote address. And while the topic of what will be unveiled has generated more speculation than tulip bulbs in seventeenth century Holland, probably no one other than Steve really knows exactly what's in store. In fact, we have a sneaking suspicion that the iCEO about to deliver the speech is probably more relaxed about the event than anyone; we're guessing he's got some guidelines about what to say, but he figures he'll just wing it for the most part. (That's not based on any solid facts, but it appeals to our collective sense of irony and general coolness.)
Anyway, you've probably been reading all the rumors as rabidly as we have, but to recap, the overall consensus seems to be this: while the next-generation "Kihei" iMac is unlikely to take the stage, Jobs will unveil some form of Power Macintosh G4, either based on the new Sawtooth motherboard or possibly using a slightly modified Yosemite board while the elves in Cupertino squash the last of Sawtooth's bugs. The case is rumored to be very similar to the existing G3 boxes, sans the "G3" on the side and with some sort of smoky translucent grey replacing the Blueberry in hopes that a less "frivolous" enclosure will appeal to the more humorless businesses out there. And a new computer demands a new, matching display; keep an eye peeled for "Tonga," an enormous 20" flat-panel jobbie that runs at insanely high resolutions and connects to a new ATI graphics card via an all-digital interface-- just what the graphic artists ordered. In addition, prepare for more about Mac OS 9, a new version of ColorSync, an update on AppleScript (including support in Mac OS X), and probably at least a couple of surprises no one's predicted.
If, like us, you can't make it to the show, fear not-- that's what QuickTime 4 is for. Big Steve's speech will be webcast live in the best streaming video format on the planet, both from Apple's site and from the formerly RealVideo-only ZDTV. Just point your browser in the right direction at noon Eastern time, sit back, pop open a frosty beverage, and watch Steve's impish image stream right into your office/den/laundry room/whatever. And then, once and for all, we'll know who guessed right and who got taken in by the hooey. (We consider our wide-eyed selves to be particularly vulnerable to hooey, so we're anxiously awaiting the truth.)
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SceneLink (1749)
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 8/30/99 episode: August 30, 1999: Seybold is upon us, and soon all the guesswork will dissipate in the light of Big Steve's Awesome Truth™. Meanwhile, the next big Apple event appears to be a star-studded extravaganza on September 25th-- new iMac? Shipping party for the iBook? And game giant GT Interactive allegedly pirates a funky little game by a small software developer...
Other scenes from that episode: 1750: Waiting For What's Next (8/30/99) But for those of you tuning in just after the big keynote, you're probably asking yourselves, "What now?" Sure, you're excited about how Steve surprised us all by skipping the G4 hype entirely and pre-announcing the Power Mac G5 available in 2002 and slated to ship in Herringbone and Tweed, but there's always that post-keynote depression that sets in once all the surprises have been revealed... 1751: Bill Would Be Proud (8/30/99) Switching gears entirely, have you heard about this new lawsuit between StarPlay and GT Interactive? StarPlay is a company that makes games for Macs and PCs; we know about them because their '50s bowling simulation, Alley 19, is a real hoot-- it's one of the few games we keep installed on our main boot disk, and we've given away a few copies that were rattling around in our Baffling Vault of Antiquity™ Of course, StarPlay is relatively obscure when compared to entertainment giants GT Interactive, who put out a ton of "A-list" games on the PC side and incorporate MacSoft for Macintosh games that everyone's heard of...
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