Macworld Expo gets rolling this evening with a pair of media receptions, the start of The New Era that show organizers IDG are promising. Half of the world’s largest Mac and Apple show venues has been removed to the Moscone West hall, evidence enough that things will be new and changed here in San Francisco. The expo may spill into Moscone South, but the hall above that arena is not a conference venue.

This is my fifth Macworld but the first without an Apple mothership hovering in the expo’s molten core. We’re all waiting to see what the impact of the missing lead vendor will be on this 25-year tradition. Registration lines seemed light this afternoon, although the media desk had a steady stream of reporters and bloggers. It might just be a feeling, but the attitude at the press registration desk smacked of genuine gratitude for our attentions.

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