Expo-goers test drive iLife 09 and iWork 09 at the Apple booth, which was announced during the keynote at MacWorld Jan. 5-9. JESSICA LUTHI / THE GUARDSMAN

By Jessica Luthi
Editor in Chief

Thousands of people from around the world come to San Francisco every year for the biggest gathering in matters of all things Apple. IDG’s MacWorld Expo and Conference at the Moscone Center from Jan. 5. to Jan. 9, has become the the company’s platform to unveil many of its popular consumer electronics, including the iPhone and the MacBook Air.

Apple announced in Dec. 2008, it would be pulling of out the popular trade show in 2010.

Phillip Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, spoke at this year’s keynote address, which has become a major highlight for the show. “I can’t tell you how personally excited I am to be the one to deliver MacWorld 2009’s keynote to you,” Schiller said at the keynote.

Rumors began circulating after the Apple’s initial announcement that CEO Steve Jobs would not be delivering the annual keynote. “Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote set off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some media outlets even publishing stories of me on my deathbead, ” said Jobs in a letter to the Apple community.

Even though Jobs wasn’t present for the first time in nearly a decade, the show went on.

This year, Apple released a slew of new updates to its software packages iLife and iWork, as well as the addition of 17-inch MacBook Pro to the Mac family. Although Apple did no major unveiling of new, trendsetting electronics, many expo-goers managed to get excited about the upcoming changes to iTunes.

iTunes currently includes music from major music labels — Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group and EMI. But one of the biggest changes is that all music available on iTunes will now be DRM-free via iTunes Plus, beginning with eight million songs this month and the final two million plus songs by the end of Apple’s current quarter. After April 1, songs can also be purchased in three tiers – $.69, $.99, $1.29, which Schiller said will be a benefit for consumers.

Music, in combination with iTunes, has been a signature product for Apple. Many songs have become popular after being used in Apple ads,  including Feist’s “1,2,3,4″ and Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida”. “Now we’re ending on music … I think it’s fitting to end our last MacWorld keynote with an artist who really has some amazing music,” Schiller said before introducing Grammy award-winning artist, Tony Bennett, who ended with the “The best is yet to come.”

BY GRAHAM HENDERSON
STAFF WRITER

The debate will go on as long as Microsoft and Apple are in business. Both companies’ crown jewels are their most current operating systems, Windows Vista and OS X Leopard, respectively, and while both systems have their pros and cons, Leopard is a better choice.

Initially, the purchase cost of a Windows-based computer is cheaper than a comparable Apple one, but according to the Website macvspc.info, it is a false economy.

The website uses the analogy of buying a car: While the Windows ‘car’ may be marginally cheaper initially, when features and maintenance, and fuel economy are taken into account, it’s the Mac ‘car’ that comes out making the most economic sense.

For the average computer user, Macs are also much easier to use. Unlike PCs, where the computer, operating system and programs are all made by different companies, Apple’s monopoly-like business plan allows all their products to work together seamlessly.

For example, an iPod is able to automatically sync its calendar with the iCal program on the computer. Because Apple makes its own computers and operating system, the operating system can be optimized to run on Apples hardware. Apple also uses better quality hardware in its computers, which improves performance and reliability.

Even though other companies, including Microsoft, offer programs for Macs, the monopoly approach still has its downsides. It requires you to buy into Apple’s way of thinking, and hence, buy into their product line.
Other types of MP3 players cannot automatically sync with iTunes. Similarly, Apple does not make it easy to syncronize your iPod with other popular music downloading programs, such as Rhapsody and Napster music subscription services.

While it is possible to overcome this limitation by installing other programs to syncronize your iPod, it requires a bit of tech knowledge that the general public may not have.

Presently, Mac OS X has only 7.3 percent of the market share, and the business world remains even more Windows dominated.

Most hackers and viruses are aimed at Windows because it’s larger market share means a higher number of potential targets. Less viruses are created for Macs means less chance of your computer getting infected.
The real winning feature of Macs is how easy the operating system makes it to run Windows-based programs. Theoretically, Windows can run Mac operating systems as well through the use of emulators, but this is too complicated in practice.

Apple’s Boot Camp makes it easy for anyone of any skill level to install and use Windows on their Mac. Apple will even install Windows for you at an Apple store when you buy your computer.

Windows will always have a place, but the reality is that most people don’t want or need to endlessly customize their operating systems. People want an operating system that will do what they want reliably and consistently and Apple delivers.

DESMOND MILLER / GUARDSMAN