Hopefully they'll incorporate Google Talk's audio chat (libjingle) in iChat.

At this stage it should be expensive because that will make it more desireable. There will be cheaper models down the line.
The first iPods were really expensive too.The high-end model used to cost $499. A friend of mine works at a top investment bank and all his co-workers went iPod crazy when the first Windows version came out. My guess is that the fact that it was expensive added greatly to that.

I do think they should sell the iPhone without a contract, but I guess they have their reasons. I don't think they felt compelled to team up with Cingular just for visual voicemail. It's neat, but not that neat.

My wishlist for Adium:
a) H.323 and SIP support for audio/video
b) Libjingle for Google Talk voice chat.

XMeeting provides a), but it would be nice to have an all-in-one solution. Gizmo supports SIP and Jabber, but no video and there's no app with libjingle for the mac yet as far as I know (maybe som CVS build of Psi).

Using closed proprietary communication protocols is just ridiculous.

The argument that it's too much work doesn't ring true to me. It wasn't too much work when it was originally done, so why is it too much work now?

According to the Wikipedia entry for Visual Basic for Applications MS plans to eventually phase out VBA in favour of Visual Studio Tools for Applications (VSTA). With that in mind the decision to scrap VBA on the mac makes more sense.

Novell and Sun are working together on VBA conversion support for OpenOffice.

I haven't used Vista enough to comment on the intrusiveness of UAC, but any operating system I use had better prompt me for my password before allowing anything to tinker with my system files.

Dunno about legacy stuff on your network.
The Wikipedia entry for 802.11n states:
"An 802.11 access point may operate in one of three modes:
Legacy (only 802.11a, b, and g)
Mixed (both 802.11a, b, g, and n)
Greenfield (only 802.11n) - maximum performance
Note: Even a single non-802.11n client can slow down the entire network (as with an 802.11b client on an 802.11g network)."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/802.11n#802.11n

Well, you're wrong.

Gizmo Project is a Skype competitor started by Michael Robertson (of Linspire and MP3.com fame). Unlike Skype (which use a closed, proprietary protocol) they use the open SIP standard for VoIP and Jabber for instant messaging.

I really don't see the point. I carry my MacBook Pro in a neoprene sleeve in my messenger bag. If I need take it out to check my Sideshow screen I might as well open the lid.
Isn't this what a smartphone is for?

Will,

I doubt they will (have they ever?), but you can always get an USB network adapter if you really need it.