Mac World tidbits
My bags are packed, the plants are watered, cat litter box “refreshed,” and … I started wondering where to eat once I get to MacWorld.
Checking out some random posts about MW on MacRumors.com, I found this:
MacWorldEats, which you can download, install in the Notes folder on your iPod (which of course you would be bringing with you, anyway!) and then you can select by cuisine, proximity, etc. Yay!
More:
Here’s a compleat list of events, parties, etc. The Hess List
Some folks suggest you forgo the keynote and instead visit your local Apple Store and watch the live stream there.
Got Predictions? You can enter a predictions contest at Insanely Great News or Michael Yurechko.
Comment // March 17th, 2008 // 4:00 pm
JIM’S MEMORIES
For the first time ever, my wife, Zee, and I attended the MacWorld Expo and Conference in San Francisco, January 14-18, 2008, where we met up with Dan and Erica Simpson, fellow PMUG members. Here are my memories of MacWorld, followed by Zee’s memories. We are writing independently of each other, so there may be some duplication of memories..
We drove from Prescott, and spent the first night in Bakersfield, CA, and went to dinner at a local Basque restaurant, Benji’s. Every time we stop in Bakersfield we eat at either Benji’s or Woolgrowers, another fine Basque restaurant. The second day of our trip we arrived in early afternoon at Inn 1890, the B & B we were staying at. A delightful place, and we highly recommend it. We had a beautiful room, fireplace, wifi, and a delightful breakfast every morning. Our trip was off to an excellent start.
On Tuesday morning, we took the bus, which we got on only two blocks from the B & B, to the site of MacWorld, about a 15 minute ride, and it cost only 50 cents—a bargain. There was a huge crowd in front of MacWorld, all awaiting for the doors to open at 10 am so we could get in to see the exhibits. The doors didn’t open until almost 11, and once inside, pandemonium reigned. No organization, lines every which direction, and we already had purchased our tickets but needed to get entrance badges. Well, we decided the heck with this, so we left and walked up to the Apples store, about two blocks away, where Zee bought the new iPod Touch (which, BTW, she really likes). Ouch! Apple stores are dangerous places—to your wallet at least. We had a nice lunch at Bloomingdales, got back at MacWorld about 1 pm, the lines were almost gone, and we quickly got our badges and headed into the exhibit hall. Our “real” MacWorld experience was finally to begin.
As we walked into the massive hall, full of hundreds of vendors eager to show us their wares and give us free “goodies”, the sight was almost overwhelming. We spent that afternoon, and the next day, walking past vendor after vendor, in two separate buildings, looking at all the associated “Appleware” and “Macware” (are these new words?) for sale. One can’t believe, as an example, of how many different iterations of covers there are available for the iPhone and the various iPods. We saw a live demo of the new MacBook Air (MBA), got to handle it, and was duly impressed by its small size. The first evening we watched, in our room and on our Macs, Steve Jobs Keynote address. Much simpler than standing in line for hours trying to get a seat to hear his address in person.
After all this looking, we were duly pooped and took Thursday off from “MacWorlding” it. Instead, Zee and I went to the Fisherman’s Wharf area, walked around, had a delightful seafood lunch, watched all the street artisans and musicians performing, and listened to the sea lions barking and basking in the sun. A pleasant outing, a nice day, and the weather was perfect, as it had been all week—not a cloud and no rain. Unusual for San Francisco.
Friday morning we left San Francisco and followed Dan and Erica to the main Apple store on the Apple Campus and headquarters in Cupertino. We looked a bit, then went over to San Jose where we toured the Winchester Mansion, another story to tell sometime. After the tour, we had lunch at the mansion, then Dan and Erica headed home while Zee and I went to Paso Robles, CA for a wine festival.
Did we have fun? Yes! Would we do it again? Yes! Next year we’ll sign up for some of the seminars and classes, which we didn’t do this year. It would be fun if a group of us from PMUG could go to MacWorld next year, and all of us reserve a room in Inn 1890. Something for all to think about, and start saving your money!…Jim Hamm
Comment // March 17th, 2008 // 8:54 pm
Jim, I love the idea of a bunch of Prescottonians staying at that B&B. That sounds like my kind of place. How many months in advance did you make your reservations?
Thanks for sharing your experience at MacWorld. I had no idea there were others there from Prescott!
By the way, I dropped a bunch of $$ at that Apple store at Cupertino a couple of years ago.
Looking forward to seeing Zee’s rendition! Thank you for commenting.