Talkcast tonight 10pm ET: Countdown to ecstasy

With less than one week to go before the big day, we'll be focusing tonight's show on the anticipation, app announcements and all things iPad. Come on by for a free-wheeling conversation about the Next Big Thing, and some tips for finding a first-day iPad (even if you haven't gotten your order in yet).

We'll also be doing one of our periodic Apple trivia nights, with delightful prizes. Tonight, it's free copies of the iPhone app that lets you know what's going on around you: Happening, from our friend and colleague Nik Fletcher.

To participate on TalkShoe, you can use the browser-only client, the embedded Facebook app, or the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, for maximum fun, you should call in. For the web UI, just click the "TalkShoe Web" button on our profile page at 10 pm Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (take advantage of your free cellphone weekend minutes if you like): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 — during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8.

If you've got a headset or microphone handy on your Mac, you can connect via the free Gizmo or X-Lite SIP clients; basic instructions are here. Talk with you then!