Architosh News: Jobs bows out of Internet World: Trouble in Cupertino?

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Jobs bows out of Internet World: Trouble in Cupertino?

16 Mar 00

According to a news story at ZDNet, Apple CEO, Steven Jobs, will not be the keynote speaker of Internet World next month. Dara Tyson, director of the public relations for Darian, Conn.-based eCRM, the show's organizer, told ZDNet news that Apple would still be sponsoring the show and exhibiting on the show floor, but that Jobs would not be the lead keynote speaker, or any speaker.

While this news is certainly unexpected to many in the computer world, for some Apple fans and the Mac press in general, it isn't such a big surprise. Apple has been having trouble with Motorola's inability to push the powerful G4 processor forward in the megahertz department. This reality may have affected Apple's decision to speak at the show, as Jobs would certainly not want to repeat recent history by announcing a new G4 processor (rumored to be in the works and working at speeds up to 780MHz) that the company could not readily ship on schedule. The company is currently behind schedule with speed improvements on its professional Power Mac G4 line.

[Updated]

Apple has had a difficult and embarrassing last five months, since the company's exciting announcements regarding the new Power Mac G4's and their discovered inability to ship the fastest of those machines -- the G4/500MHz model. In the Fall of 99', Apple claimed the delays were due to Motorola's unforeseen problem in producing error-free G4 chips running at 500MHz. Motorola responded by blaming Apple but later commented that they would fix the problem. Apple then had to backpedal a few different times when they downgraded the entire G4 line a 50MHz notch without lowering the price.

"Their is the slight possibility that the real reason Apple has dropped out is that the company was planning on announcing their long rumored 'handheld computer' (said to be a Palm OS device with wireless Internet capability) and the machine is simply not ready."

While Apple has since made up for those outrageous maneuvers, and delighted us at Macworld Expo in January with a 'sooner-than-expected' working preview of the upcoming Mac OS X, Apple fans are growing terribly impatient with the company's G4 chip situation. Apple fans want faster machines! Period. And apparently, Apple has gone to IBM for G4 chip supply solutions. Furthering trouble for Motorola is the allegation that Apple is unable to ship working, IBM G4 chip-based machines running at speeds of up to 650MHz (or possibly higher) due to a legal snafu in the contract between IBM and Motorola. Motorola has since declined the charge.

With this unforeseen withdrawal of Jobs from speaking at Internet World, it appears that the company may have fallen behind [again] in producing new faster G4 systems. Another possible scenario is that Jobs wanted to show an up-to-date preview beta of Mac OS X (planned to hit store shelves this summer) and that has fallen behind. However, this is unlikely, as that is most likely planned for Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in May. What likely happened, is that Apple's new rumored G4e-processor-based systems are not yet ready for prime-time. And Apple most certainly wont repeat the Seybold announcement blunder of last Fall.

Their is the slight possibility that the real reason Apple has dropped out is that the company was planning on announcing their long rumored 'handheld computer' (said to be a Palm OS device with wireless Internet capability) and the machine is simply not ready. And an even more remote rumor is that the company planned on showing us something totally new altogether. Could it have been an Internet appliance of some type? Come Internet World we will be left wondering....what?

Pertinent Links:

Can IBM and Motorola get along? - MacWEEK

Apple collapsed on the sidelines as Intel/AMD race to -GHz - MacJunkie

IBM delivering G4 chips in lieu of Motorola - AppleInsider

Outlook for faster G4 systems appear gloomy - AppleInsider

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