It’s quite easy for a tech writer to tell you what a certain company ought to do to become successful or at least remain successful. But the only thing is that if any of us really knew what was really necessary, we’d be making the big bucks as an executive at one of those companies. Instead, we remain in the underclass of overworked writers.

No, we don’t earn huge salaries at such pursuits, but someone has to do it, and that’s how it goes.

On the other hand, some things about a company’s behavior are blatantly obvious, and if you try to take a few lessons from history, it’s really possible to arrive at a few sensible conclusions.

You know, for example, that new Apple products are coming this week. Your expectations might have been lessened by their decision to call in a second act — in the person of marketing VP Philip Schiller — to deliver the keynote at the last Macworld Expo in which Apple will participate.

That would seem to indicate that there is no possible way that Apple will present anything more than a few minor revisions to existing products, and that will be the end of it. But I have a different point of view.

Story continued in this week’s Tech Night Owl Newsletter.

This article was posted on Sunday, January 4th, 2009 at 6:30 PM and is filed under News and tagged with: 25th anniversary, activation, Apple Products, AT&T, Ceo, development, Edge, Firmware, history, iMac, iPhone 3G, Ipod, Keynote, Mac Mini, Mac Os, Mac Os X, Mac User, Macworld Expo, mini, netbook, snow leopard, Steve Jobs, U.S., Windows, Windows 7, Windows Vista, XP.