It is a dour, rainy day here in San Francisco where I will be reporting live from a special presentation Apple will deliver at 10 am PST/ 1pm EST. From clues given out in event invites it's expected that Apple will officially showcase the next version of the iPad and although I expect that Apple will offer a live video feed from their website, I will also be sending out real-time updates as the news drops through my own text and photo feeds on Twitter and Facebook. Check back here at my blog for a detailed post on today's announcements including Canadian details which are traditionally released 30 minutes to an hour after the big event is over. 

Today's news is certainly easy to guess at. An updated version of the iPad should include more power, speed, and efficient battery use. A built-in camera is the most obvious addition, so too would be an app version of iPhoto to offer photo editing and album creation. Will this make today's event Apple's most predictable launch? With more than an hour of announcements I certainly hope will see a few surprises.

The health of Steve Jobs will certainly be on the minds of many today. The Apple co-founder and CEO is on yet another health leave to address a complicated and little-understood illness he's been battling for years. The industry abounds with whispers that he's "not long for this world". Many will be watching to see if he makes an appearance today. Hopefully the whispers are just that and he's well enough to enjoy the day. 

We'll see at 10 PST/ 1pm EST.