As Far As You Know

Apple's Steve Jobs presented new products earlier today: among them a souped-up version of the iMac (of course, released just a few months after I upgraded to a new one), iPods with video capability, and a revamped iTunes Music Store selling video content including--and this is the revolutionary part, I believe--current television programs such as Desperate Housewives and Lost. The latter feature may emerge as the "killer app" for the video iPods: imagine missing your favorite show on television, then downloading it the next day for $1.99 to watch on your computer or perhaps on your iPod while commuting to work. Right now five ABC offerings are available; if the content expands (for example, to HBO hits like The Sopranos) this could be an exciting implementation of video on demand.