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The Morphing of eMac (6/26/98)
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Faithful viewers already know that we at AtAT are huge fans of Apple's PowerBooks; in fact, AtAT is produced entirely on a Duo 280c when we're broadcasting from the road. Now, while we love our Duo, we've got to admit that it's getting a little long in the tooth. Not being able to run any PPC software is starting to become a problem. However, we've been holding off on replacing the lovable little LC040 laptop, because our two biggest concerns are physical size and cost. (That pretty much eliminates the PowerBook G3 Series from the running.) We like the now-discontinued 2400, but we're a little tired of buying obsolete equipment; and besides, we're really interested in seeing what Apple manages to scrape together for the fourth part of its product strategy-- that consumer-level portable that has been dubbed the "eMac."
For the longest time, it's been rumored that when the eMac surfaces next year, it will be based on the eMate's funky form factor, but it'll run a slimmed-down version of the Mac OS, commonly referred to as "Allegro Lite." Allegro Lite was supposedly going to be Apple's answer to Windows CE, but some news over at Mac OS Rumors indicates that next year's consumer portables won't run Allegro Lite after all; instead, they'll run the full-fledged Mac OS, in all its glory. Suddenly the eMac sounds less like a Newton/eMate replacement and more like a low-cost PowerBook. If that's true, the eMac will be a terrific option for schools looking for eMate-style portables that are first-class citizens on their Mac networks; no new applications or operating system to worry about.
Unfortunately, that could also mean that many of the useful features of the MessagePad and eMate won't exist in the eMac. Will it support handwriting recognition? Can it be powered on and off in a second? Will it have a hard drive instead of flash RAM, which would mean it wouldn't be nearly as rugged as the eMate? We won't know the answers until Apple actually announces just what the eMac is, and while that could come as soon as the MacWorld Expo in a couple of weeks (it is supposed to be more consumer-oriented this year), we're not holding our breath. Still, the possibilities are intriguing enough that we're certainly looking forward to hearing more. In the meantime, we're sure our trusty Duo will have no trouble pulling its weight.
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 6/26/98 episode: June 26, 1998: Apple continues to prepare its mystery guest backstage, and rumors claim that the shadowy "eMac" will eventually emerge wearing the full-fledged Mac OS instead of Allegro Lite. Meanwhile, Microsoft faces the possibility of either ponying up a lot of cash or changing the name of its web browser, and Windows 98 may somehow contain the ability to damage certain computer hardware...
Other scenes from that episode: 808: Oh, The Humanity (6/26/98) Finally, a little high-profile coverage of an interesting case that's been dragging on for years now... How many of you were aware that Microsoft doesn't actually own the rights to the name "Internet Explorer?"... 809: Hardware Damage 98® (6/26/98) Meanwhile, Windows 98 arrived on Thursday to throngs of eager PC users-- who apparently lined up primarily for cheap giveaways and free food, as we've received reports from several CompUSA employees who cite low sales of Windows 98, despite a huge turnout for the unveiling...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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