Yesterday IDG announced it already has over 28,000 registered attendees. That is pretty amazing considering we are still four months away. I know it was popular to predict the end of Macworld with Apple pulling out but the re-engineering of the event (and moving it to February) may prove to make it bigger than ever. If you decide to go to Macworld this year, make sure to check out one of my sessions.

This Saturday I’ll be giving a version of my Mac at Work presentation to an excellent local Mac User Group. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by. I’m going to be doing a several public speaking events on the Mac over the next few months to work out the kinks before Macworld.

The Macworld Expo has built a nice little community site. As we get closer to the event, this allows people to talk about interesting events and make plans. If you are planning on attending, or simply interested in Macworld goings ons, check it out. You can find my Macworld Ning website here.

I am pleased to announce I’ll be presenting two sessions at Macworld Expo and Conference in February. The descriptions are listed below. If you are planning on attending, let me know. I’m already planning these presentations to be something special.

Mac at Work

Feb. 11, 2010, 1:00 PM – 2:15 PM
While creative professionals and students have always “seen the light” and used Apple Macintosh computers, the business world has traditionally shunned the Macintosh platform. Up until very recently, the only apples you’d find in business were in lunch bags. That, however, is changing. Macs are starting to pop up in the strangest places including boardrooms, corner suites, and courthouses all over the place. This session will tackle some of the most common work related tasks and explain Mac specific tools to conquer them. Topics will include: mail, task management, word processing and number crunching, presentation tools, PDF management, note taking, project management, business graphics, and billing. There will also be a discussion of how to help Macs play nicely at the workplace including networking with the Enterprise and sharing data with PC colleagues.
This session is for people who suddenly find themselves with shiny new Macs but no idea where to start or those with older Macs but want to go beyond Microsoft Word. The session will describe software and hardware advice, tips, and recommendations to squeeze all the juicy goodness out of that Apple on your desk and, better yet, make participants look fantastic to their bosses, co-workers, and clients.
You will hear about software recommendations, tips, and workflows for using your Mac to do the most common work related tasks better, faster, and with more panache.

Numbers Lab: Spreadsheets with Flair

Feb. 9, 2010 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Apple’s Numbers application isn’t like the worn out spreadsheet programs you are used too. While it certainly can crunch numbers with the rest of them, Numbers is much deeper allowing you to sort and organize just about any information and share and report your data like no other spreadsheet application. Attendees at this interactive presentation will create Numbers spreadsheets and learn several intermediate to advanced Numbers techniques in a fun and entertaining environment.
This session is for all Mac users looking for a better way to manage information and supercharge their Numbers prowess.
Attendees will learn:
To build and customize Numbers sheets and templates
Formula and function power tips
How (and when) to make compelling charts and graphics
Numbers’ robust reporting and printing tools
The best techniques for sharing their Numbers data with Mac and PC users
How to customize the Numbers interface and templates to their own needs.

Today IDG announced 2010 Macworld moved from January to February 9 – 13, 2010. The location will remain at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, CA. I spoke with several developers, exhibitors, and attendees at this year’s Macworld and the one point everyone agreed to was that having the event the week after New Years and the same time as CES was madness. I think the move to February was a good thing and should make it easier for attendees and exhibitors alike.
Free Expo Hall registration for Macworld 2010 will remain open, for a limited time, so if you are thinking about it, go register. I’ve been to several Macworld expos and for me the experience has always been defined by the community, not the Apple booth, so start making your plans now.

My friend Chuck Joiner, who produces some excellent podcasts of his own, was kind enough to post video of the Mac Roundtable live discussion at Macworld as part of his new MacVoices.tv project. Except for my occasional incoherent babbling, it is pretty good.

The social aspect of Macworld should not be underestimated. Imagine being surrounded by 14,000 fellow mac geeks in one big pool of geek soup.
Of course you can hone your geek skills in any of the number of conferene tracks but this atmosphere manifests itself in many ways. Groups of attendees spontaneously drop to the floor of conference halls and whip out their laptops of the conference halls to share their latest cool application and applescript mojo. People break out into arguments over the best use of PHP while simultaneously complimenting one another over their vintage T-shirts. Strangers walk up to you and tell you about the latest booth swag with a conspiratorial grin. It really is a fantastic gathering.
In addition to meeting users, you also get face time with your favorite developers. I have reviewed software and hardware for several attending developers and it truly is a pleasure to meet these people who work so hard on making fantastic Mac products. Not only does it afford you opportunity to catch up but also a chance to explain particular requests. The developers are there to hear your feedback and Macworld floor discussions often result in new features and tweaks in your favorite applications.
This year, IDG also introduced “Birds of a Feather” sessions allowing groups of interested users to have an after hours conference room to discuss particular Mac topics. I attended one hosted by Adam Christianson of the MacCast where several experienced podcasters shared their tricks.
In addition to the show room floor friendships, there are a variety of nightly parties and gatherings. This year I attended several. On Tuesday night, MacRumors.com and iPhoneAlley.com hosted an excellent gathering at Jillian’s (across the street from Moscone.) At it I made several new Apple friends and got to reconnect with some older ones. I also got to commiserate with Arnold Kim about MacRumors getting hacked in the middle of the Keynote.
My favorite Macworld party remains the Cirque du Mac. The Macworld Allstar Band played including folks such as Bob “Dr. Mac” Levitus, Chris Breen, Dave Hamilton, an others. This year it was held in a burlesque club (turned PG rated for the geek crowd) and included a trapeeze artist.
The best social aspects of Macworld for me, however, is the reunion of friends. Meeting up with my gang of podcaster friends makes the trip absolutely worth it. We shared many meals and laughs and I already look forward to seeing them next year. A well placed grenade at the below lunch could have put a serious dent in Mac podcasting.