Slashdot Mirror
Apple Nixes Live Webcast, Satellite Feed
spamguy writes "MacInTouch reports that Steve Jobs' January 11th MacWorld Expo keynote address may not be broadcast live in any way. If you were hoping to watch Stevie present the rumoured sub-$500 Mac, the Motorola phone, the Flash iPod, and/or the office suite, you now have no choice but to buy your plane tickets to San Francisco ASAP."
Now they can't screw it up like Gates did. Although, no one can see it, so it doesn't matter if they screw up or not...
isnt it a good advert for apple when millions are tuning into live webcasts to see what's happening? it's not like it's doing them any harm is it? the news is out there.
dave
You know, there has been this concern in some previous years too and every year there has ended up being a live webcast. I suppose its possible, but I seriously doubt it. During almost every keynote, Jobs starts out with, "Welcome to MacWorld, we have XX thousand people attending, and another XXX thousand people watching this keynote throughout the world on the web."
I certainly hope there is a webcast, otherwise what will I do at work for those two hours? Actually write code? Bahhh.
I mean, shit, this is pratically begging for someone to use their Powerbook and iSight to do this.
Apple probably figured they didn't need to waste the money on the web cast because the audience will be filled with Apple fan boi bloggers uploading Jobs' comments in real time and streaming iSight video.
John.
it's being posted as a file later on, you can watch it as many damn times as you like then. Is this really bl**dy news??
you now have no choice but to buy your plane tickets to San Francisco ASAP
Or wait until the stream is released the next day.
Find funky gifts
"If you were hoping to watch Stevie present [...], you now have no choice but to buy your plane tickets to San Francisco ASAP."
Errr, why bother? I can think of many reasons to go to San Francisco as it's a great place, but this isn't one of them. Everything he announces will be on te internet in short measure anyway. What is the attraction?
Like how Apple paid for the shipping and repair of my iBook with a faulty logic board free of charge although I didn't have AppleCare and my warranty was expired. And how they even sent of a loaner iBook (with a faster processor and more RAM) to use while they fixed it.
Apple takes care of its customers better than most other computer companies.
Ciao
Motorola has already debuted its new phone at CES.
This is planted, just to get more attraction to the event. You don't know Mr. Jobs very well, do you?
Rumors, law suits, cancellations, more rumors... it all adds up to an exciting climax.
You can hang around on any of the Mac rumour sites, who usually have people at the shows connected via WiFi reporting on exactly whats going on - either via frequent updates to a webpage or on an IRC channel.
:)
Thats what i've done for the last few Mac shows where big announcements were expected
"Hey! Unless this is a nude love-in, get the hell off my property!!"
Yes the whole speech with bill gates and his blue screen PC is here to watch, at 300kbps
Updated Macintosh Security News
this is apple's revenge over the apple fanatics, after fan sites snitched details about the new upcoming product releases
I can only guess that the reason the keynote isn't being transmitted is because of the recent lawsuits that have been flying in both directions of late. Not so much a reason, but perhaps it's Mr. Jobs' pique instead?
Regardless, anything important enough that's announced, I can find out at the end of the day on Macintouch. It's not that important.
Besides that, to paraphrase H.L. Mencken (sort of), one goes to MacWorld for many of the reasons one goes to the zoo. Except that there's a much better zoo in San Diego; maybe I'll do that instead while MacWorld's going on.
Those who can, do. Those who can't, write technology blogs.
From all accounts, there is huge interest in this macworld, its being hyped up and they might fear that the webcast cannot handle any sort of predicted load. Instead they will just release it later after all the fanfare and the need to watch it dies away. Just as everyone says, it'll be out on the net anyway moments after the annoucement.
In any case I'll stay off the mac websites until its out for streaming, I want to be equally disappointed like I was last year when GarageBand was demoed for something like 2 hours with some no name artist looking interested.
Jonathanjk.com
You know Roland, you'd come across as far more credible in your quest to present yourself as a journalist if you could spell simple words like "rinse" correctly.
Don't you deal with Apple news on your site? If you do then you've probably just lost a few readers by suggesting that this is "obviously only of interest to Steve Jobs and Apple devotees", and they won't all be Apple fanatics: I'm sure there are plenty of non-devotees, including the CEOs of companies like Microsoft, Adobe, RealNetworks, Creative, HP and Sun to name but a few who pay close attention to what Jobs has to say.
"Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." - David Brent, Wernham Hogg
Oh fuck, the sky is falling.
Torrent here
I'd expect there to be more than 6 people. Ever visit a Mac IRC channel during one of these things? ... ;_; ...
Ted: here it comes...
MacBoy: that wasn't so cool
iluvsteve: it's not small enough
lickable: i'm in love
gregmac: steve is hot
G6: what's happening now?!?!?
doug-eMac: OMGOMGOMGOMG
nickname: one more thing!
AppleDave: One more thing!!!
hax0r: he said "one more thing"
macdude: knew it! one more thing!
steveiloveyou: ONE MORE THING
iPaul: i bet it's the apple tv!
G6: i can't see the stream
yoda: onew moer thigns!!!!!
iluvsteve: one more thingg
BondiTed: there's one more thing!!1
MACSSUCK: YOU GUYS SUCK MY ASS!!!!!!!!!!!!
iDude: ha!
cindyjobs: one more thing!!!!
steve_: it's the icar!!!
mosesjones: one more thing!
applerules: better be a cheaper ipod!
freeipod: one more thing!
G6: i want to see!1
3macs: one more!!
i want steve: one more thing!!
penis: he said one more thing!
And this goes on for about 90 minutes with a hundred or so people repeating every line out of Steve's mouth!
And trust me when I say the Mac web forums are much worse.
I wonder if this is something to do with the ThinkSecret case? Maybe Steve is p!ssed off at everyone but those who can prove their "loyalty" by attending? Hmm, as much as I love my iBook, I think I'll just read the reports. Is Mr Jobs really that good a speaker? Am I missing on the reality distortion field here?
Yeah, I mean, stuff like Spotlight, CoreImage/Video/Data, Quartz Extreme, and the entire Mac OS X system in general are so behind the times.
Mod down posts with a "Free Mac Mini/iPod" sig, they're spam!
Lots of people are new to Apple products because of the iPod. Having seen the iPod and been impressed by it, they are now interested in buying Apple computers, but the entry level price point is a little high.
There's your market.
If I want to see flawless hi-tech presentations, I watch Bill Gates.
Oh wait... Damn!
Just
A protest in PARIS, in 2000?
what exactly would that have to do with _anything_ in San Francisco in 2005?
Advanced users are users too!
the day before he makes it. Those rumor sites...
You were lucky. I sent in my PowerBook for repairs in the middle of this year. It took them a month to admit that they'd lost it, and another month to send me a replacement. For the last couple of weeks of being without, they sent me a loan unit which was inferior to mine and defective (screen had an intermittent fault, airport card wouldn't get a DHCP lease). The unit they replaced it with initially came with the wrong RAM configuration, and had the same fault I'd originally sent mine in to have fixed. And I had paid for Apple `Care'. It took several hours on the telephone to customer support and numerous emails to get them to even admit that they'd lost the unit (actually, they admitted it a few times, but didn't do anything about it, and had forgotten by my next call).
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
I find your faith in media disturbing.
Seriously, I don't own any Apple-hardware, yet I enjoy watching Steve Jobs's keynotes. Why? He's an extremely talented and charismatic speaker. And like it or not, the products he usually talks about ARE cool.
Lesbian Nazi Hookers Abducted by UFOs and Forced Into Weight Loss Programs - -all next week on Town Talk.
The "real" Roland Piquepaille is rpiquepa.
The user "Roland Piquepaille" is an imposter.
This paragraph says it all:
By all accounts the eMac is Apple's poorest selling Mac in the consumer sphere. Oh sure, it has some educational buyers, and probably outsells the xServe, but in terms of so-called consumer Macintoshes being bought by actual consumers, it's a lemon. It's an ugly box that forces you to have a giant 17" monitor with it at a time when ordinary users - not just geeks, not just trendy Mac users - are running out and buying LCD flat panels in droves.I know many, many, people who will not buy a Mac because of the high cost of entry. And when I say "Well, you can always get an eMac, they start at just $800", they always point out the monitor. It's not even as if you can throw away the monitor, it's there, even if you decide not to use it. Of course, Bill "Delusional" Palmer seems to think that this is a delusion on my part, that the many, many, people saying that they've made this argument and got this reply are deluding themselves. Well, there's either something very strong in the water and Palmer is a bottled water freak, or it's Mr Palmer that's living in a fantasy world.
So your comment
is just plain bogus. It does have a market, it's an entry level Mac. Right now Apple does not have an actual entry level desktop Macintosh. It has a Mac built for the education market that's kind of cheap, and it has an entry level laptop, but nothing in the entry level desktop area that works for general consumers. That's why Apple's marketshare is poor at the moment, so poor it's being beaten out by GNU/Linux, currently the ultimate niche product.As for the price, I agree it will not be $500. But those arguing that the headless iMac isn't real usually argue the product isn't real, not the price. The price is speculation. Realistically, we're looking at $600-700. At that price, it'll still be entry level, it'll still, despite the misgivings of those looking at specs alone, be low enough to attract substantial sales.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
This isn't to say the device will have a 970, just that I'm currently doubting the price is high enough to have a reasonable profit margin given the rumoured 1.2GHz CPU is probably 20-40% of the cost of the device. I'd be extremely surprised if it's under $600 (though disappointed if it's over $700)
Apple doesn't make commodity machines. They shouldn't either, it's a surefire way to doom your company.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
I don't think so. About a year ago, I purchased a 17" 1.33GHz PowerBook G4. It cost me about $3000. From almost day one, the machine would not resume from sleep, 1 out 2 times. I looked at the Apple Discussion Boards and found the problem listed there. It affects many, many users.
Apple still hasn't admitted there is a problem, not to mention providing a fix.
I gave up about 3 months ago and sold the damn thing.
Lots of people are new to Apple products because of the iPod. Having seen the iPod and been impressed by it, they are now interested in buying Apple computers, but the entry level price point is a little high.
... I'm now eyeing the 20" iMac, but am waiting for Tiger, iLife '05, and a DVD9 superdrive before I take the plunge ...
Exactly.
I bought an iPod. I was impressed even with the box it came in, the packaging, the wrappers the cords were kept in, etc. Blew my mind. These people know how to design stuff!
4 months later, I took the plunge and bought an eMac (loaded up with RAM). Haven't touched my windows machines at home since then - 'cept to play a few games.
4 months after that, I convinced my employer to get me a Dual 2GHz G5 with a 20" cinema display.
My boss saw what it could do and how it played well in the windows network - so about 1 month later, there was another Dual G5 w/ 20" cinema display in the office (good thing he didn't get the 30" display, or else I would have been pissed off.. heh).
Oh, and a couple weeks ago Santa brought my daughter a pink iPod mini. This is the same daughter that has self-taught herself the whole iLife suite, and her and her friends don't leave the eMac alone when they're having sleepovers, etc. They make radio shows with GarageBand, convert to mp3, then drop them on CDs to show their friends. They make movies, edit them, and make really cool DVDs. She just turned 11, and I haven't had to show her anything. (Her Windows machine sits relatively unused in her room now)
(I think I'm the kind of customer Apple likes)
Not taking bulk quanity reseller pricing into account, right now, I can buy:
256MB DDR RAM can be had sub-$50
80GB HDD can be had for ~$40
Combo DVD/CD-RW drive for ~$30
So, we're already at $120 and counting
G4 processor and motherboard... not sure. Last I heard, the motherboard alone was around $400. They're not cheap like x86 PC motherboards because the market is small. And that does not include the cost of the processor. Let's figure that Apple can get these parts for significantly cheaper than you or I, though, and that these parts cost around $250
Plus you have to figure in the cost of the case and power supply. I'd guesstimate this to cost ~$50.
The OS doesn't cost Apple anything to bundle, but it does cost them to develop it and they're not just doing that for their health. Presumably they'd want to recoup something on the investment. For now, though, let's say they're giving out free crack in the hopes of hooking a few more Mac junkies, and give away the OS with the hardware, and no cost is factored in. They'll make up for it by charging for updates every year, anyway.
So now, we're up to $420. An $80 margin is barely making it worthwhile for Apple, considering all the R&D they have to put in to bring this product to market. But if every miniG4 buyer ends up becoming a Mac convert, and later on decides to buy a G5 (or a G6 or whatever is out by that time) it will have been well worth it for Apple. This is a venture to expand their marketshare, not just to compete with Dell.
You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
I was notified this morning that our University will be hosting a live satellite feed of this event, and our IT staff were all invited to attend.
Not sure what the original piece was based on, but it wasn't fact.
I should also note that the only other times our school has gotten a live satellite feed, they announced some pretty kick ass product.
Obviously not everyone can be at MacWorld for teh Keynote(especailly now that Apple is only doing one a year on the West Coast).
For a tech geek, watching Job's Keynote is a kin to watching some great sporting event live. Sure you can Tivo the Game and watch it later, but when you already read the score and heard about the surprise come back, watching it post-live is not the same.
ATLEAST broadcast it in Apple stores - it is a freaking marketing event!!!
I only came here to do two things; kick some ass, and drink some beer...looks like we're almost out of beer.
What do they expect? Will they ask for receipts and give everyone who bought a Mac during the Amelio era a free iPod?
Boo hoo, they cancelled the London Expo and don't release a version that spells color with a 'u.' I've *never* had a Mac Expo in my city. Do I get to protest, too? Disrupting a keynote at a major conference will just make them look like a bunch of asshats.
If I were them I wouldn't worry about security throwing me out, I'd watch out for the people who have paid good money to see Jobs speak. Hell hath no fury like a Mac user who gets interrupted while drooling over new hardware.
You have two hands and one brain, so always code twice as much as you think!
I'll be attending a remote broadcast of the event, and our Apple sales rep. will be buying lunch (so it's not exactly unsanctioned).
They -are- doing a live, remote broadcast. The only question is "how public will that broadcast be?"
Maybe their bandwidth bills were too high after the last one, so they decided to record, encode, and blast to Akamai after the event.
--
Dell has a particular formula for success but they're extremely vulnerable. Slight market adjustments could cause HP to succeed and Dell to Chapter 11, or vice versa.
You don't want to get into a commodity market if you don't have to. It's one of the first rules of business. Apple has no reason to enter a commodity market, they merely need to create a machine that will attract significant customers. It can be underpowered relative to commodity PCs, as long as the price is low and the reputation (through products like OS X) is good enough.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
Everyone is writing in about how everything will be put up online as soon as it happens anyway by people doing transcription sitting in the audience.
If Apple wanted to limit Internet coverage, though, for whatever reason, they could easily shut down the publicly-available WAP in the convention hall. Do not tell anyone about it and then turn it off at the start of the keynote speech.
Sure, some people could get around that using cell phones, but the scramble would limit a lot of the "blow-by-blow" coverage on websites and IRC channels.
- (c) 2018 Hank Zimmerman
Thats because the Cube started out costing between $1800 and $2300. When PowerMacs at the time ran for the same price, it was a foolish luxury computer, instead of a product that would actually sell.
Mod point free since 2001
when your company is run by a charismatic visionary. When he's up, he's way up and he brings everyone with him. When he's pissed, he's way pissed and he lets even his customers feel the heat.
That's why a lot of the older Mac users (myself included) cringed in '97 when Jobs took over full control of the company. Sure, he's got the marketing touch, but he can really be a brat at times. I mean, why did he kill the Newton division, which was a) way, way ahead of Palm and Microsoft, particularly in vertical markets, and b) out of the red and starting to make money? Could it be that he killed it because it was the brainchild and pet project of his former rival, John Sculley? Is there really any question?
Obviously, it's not because Jobs is opposed to marketing non-Mac gadgets; the iPod is doing phenominally well. And we know that after Jobs killed Newton, he tried to buy out Palm, which was largely staffed by those former Newtonites that he axed. So, why did he give up a market leadership position and then scramble to get it back? He killed Newton out of spite. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Jobs is a great visionary, but he, himself, needs somebody to pull on his reigns every now and then and remind him that this isn't all about stroking his ego.
These rumor sites are so good at getting the scoop, they'll post the video!
If you are on Internet2 (or another fast research network), you can get the video at speeds up to 80 Mbps here which requires Java Web Start to download the LoDN client. If you have a set of LoRS Tools, then you can get the exNode at 2005_0105_ms_ces_300agility.wmv.xnd.
On high-speed networks, set threads to 10 and blocksize to 1 MB. On cable/dsl (you are going to try it even though you are not on Internet2, aren't you), use 3 threads and a blocksize of 512KB. Dial-up users should just click on the link in the above post.
Download Linux ISOs in 5 minutes using LoRS Tools available at http://loci.cs.utk.edu
My guess is that this has to do with the fact Quicktime 7 will be coming out, and Steve wants to get it in as many people's hot little hands as fast as he can do so. Therefore, the keynote will require Quicktime 7 to play, and since nobody will have Quicktime 7 yet, it can't be broadcast live!
- Allen Pike
Altering time, one time at a time.
If you are on Internet2 (or another fast research network), you can get the video at speeds up to 80 Mbps here which requires Java Web Start to download the LoDN client. If you have a set of LoRS Tools, then you can get the exNode at 2005_0105_ms_ces_300agility.wmv.xnd.
On high-speed networks, set threads to 10 and blocksize to 1 MB. On cable/dsl (you are going to try it even though you are not on Internet2, aren't you), use 3 threads and a blocksize of 512KB. Dial-up users should just click on the link in the above post.
I originally got the video using BT. I have left my connection open for a couple of hours to continue supplying the video, but my total uploads never get over 2.4 Mbps which is disgraceful on a campus connected at OC-12 (622 Mbps). Using LoDN or LoRS should get I2 users the file at 30-80 Mbps if not higher (on GigE connected machines).
Download Linux ISOs in 5 minutes using LoRS Tools available at http://loci.cs.utk.edu
I have been saying for months now that Apple is going to fool everyone and announce that 10.4 tiger will ship at Macworld expo. I think they will announce that Tiger will ship by the end of January and they pre-orders start the day of the expo. If this does happen it will be one secret that Apple has kept under raps and that no one....besides me....expects.
This maybe the reason for the blackout. Although the blackout does not make a whole lot of sense....There will be plenty of Mac news sites that broadcast up to the minute text based websites of the keynote events. So Apple will only be able to keep a lid on the keynote on the visual side of things. Even though I managed to snag some free tickets to the expo this year I don't think I will be able to attend because of my back injury. I have not been able to attend for 5 years now because of it.
Have you filed a bug with Apple on these?
https://bugreport.apple.com
Given that you have repro steps, I'm sure they would appreciate it.
Avoid Missing Ball for High Score
The thing that bugs me the most is that the rumor sites like Think Secret have people who will report from within the convention center. Given that there will be no stream, the rumor sites will be the only game in town, and in fact, be rewarded for the mass inconvenience they caused for everyone else.
I think that if Think Secret is ultimately responsible for this buy posting illegally obtained information (generally, there is a difference between protecting sources because of fear of physical retribution and protecting sources because they are obviously breaking the law), then TS should be punished. Like, advertisers should realize the kind of scum they are and pull their ads from the site. Sort of like how Bill Maher's show was cancelled at the peak of its ratings because the ads pulled out...
"Computer Science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes."
-E. W. Dijkstra
Our Apple account executive has gone up to the executive level at Apple, and confirmed there will NOT be satellite downlink for non-Apple-corporate sites
:)
The beauty of satellites is that they're hard to beam into corporate sites. Unless they're doing a digital encrypted stream ($$$) if you find the right bird you'll get to see it.
I can search all of the transponders on the C-band birds I can see in about 15 minutes. They're typically on the air about that long before the keynote and then Steve comes out 15-20 minutes late so there should be plenty of time.
A distributed search with an IRC channel would take about 2 minutes.
The best explaination I've heard is they intend to filter audience reaction before posting it. There will be a site somewhere with side-by-side audio tracks, I'm sure.
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
I'd certainly count Aqua and Quartz as being innovative. They had the guts to jettison ugly old X-Windows and replace it with something beautiful that is now pretty fast. Quartz Extreme is an innovative way to optimize its performance; we won't see anything like that in Windows until Longhorn and maybe not even then.
The creation of a Unix-based operating system that was accessible to the common man, with no compromises, deserves major kudos for innovation. At the time it was introduced, Linux was still stumbling badly in that category. (I don't know if it's caught up even now since it's been a while since I've used a new Linux distribution).
They were first to build wireless network access into their computers, and the first to use the new high-speed standard.
The cooling system of the G5, with multiple variable speed fans to cut down noise, is innovative.
Expose was innovative.
Producing an operating system that actually got faster with each release, instead of more bloated and sluggish (like Windows and even Linux) is innovative.
I'm sure there are a lot more things, but that's a pretty respectable list as it is.
D
Steve's magic isn't strong enough to support a reality distortion field big enough to go global on this one--must be a real hum-dinger --or-- he doesn't want the store slammed before it's updated.
More likely, he's "punishing" the unruly rumor mongering masses for the leaked insider info. More hype. Love him. Hate him. He still wins.
I might know what I'm talkin' about, but then again, this is Slashdot...
Do it as an ordinary Joe, and you will soon be arrested, fired, sued, beat up, divorced, etc.
Do it if you are rich, and gossipy news media will hail your "uncompromising standards," men will shiver at your approach, and women of loose morals will queue to induct your seed.
Moral: Assholes, rejoice! If you make enough money, you'll never have to change!