Aside from the iPod mini, Steve's keynote didn't have the attendees flowing out of the isles in search of the next big thing. This is fine, as Apple can't be expected to floor us at every Expo, and they can't be expected to hold all major announcements until an expo. Still, a laid back keynote tends to lead to a laid back expo...or is it just San Francisco?

I've been giving and receiving gifts for over 30 years now, and I can honestly say I've never been party to the exchange of the perfect one. There have been some really good ones, mind you. Bill Stiteler one year gave me a "shoehorn with teeth." Wonderful. One time, in a gift exchange with friends, I stopped at McDonald's on the way to the party, bought a Big Mac, wrapped it right there on the counter, and entered it into the exchange. Perhaps not perfect, but I had a good time that night saying, "Can we hurry up and exchange gifts? Mine's getting cold." Perfect for me, anyway.

If my handling of the situation was impressive, then why was I able to perform that way? What in my past provided me the skills I need to stay calm under pressure? To remove myself from a hot situation and look at it logically. To think clearly and make the right choices? I'm a web designer, for crying-out-loud. I was an English major. I played no sports beyond junior high basketball and I only spent one year in Air Force ROTC at college. Where could I have possibly acquired the skills necessary to do what I did that cold and snowy Saturday morning?

Many Macintosh users don't feel this way, I think. I know of quite a few who, simply because they use Apple products, feel the company is forever in their debt. Like, if these people would suddenly decide to drop their Macs for Wintel machines, Apple would simply cease to exist.

Here, I conclude my look at the "one hit wonders" of the Mac gaming industy; developers who brought us one title, then disappeared in a shroud of mystery or�in one particularly sad case�tragedy.

When thinking differently just isn't differnet enough, then it's time to start thinking absurd. Kirk Hiner's Absurd Notion takes a monthly look at the computer industry with the irreverent bent that it so rightly deserves. Kirk firmly believes that not one aspect of human life is above satire, and is pretty sure that the same goes for computer life. It may be absurd to take him seriously, but it's also a lot more fun.