I'm headed out the door to meet Aaron and Adriana at MacWorld 2010 in San Francisco. And frankly, I'm not expecting much. But that's a good thing.

This marks the first year that Apple is not exhibiting at a MacWorld Conference and Expo, which leads many (like us) to wonder what the heck MacWorld will be like without an Apple Keynote and giant Apple booth anchoring the Expo. IDG, who puts the conference on, is trying to bill it as MacWorld "The New Era."  Hmm. While the user conference has been going on for a few days now, the show floor doesn't open for another hour and a half or so, but pre-show maps and exhibitor lists have already tipped everyone off to expect a very small exhibit hall by modern tech show standards.

But I'm still kind of excited. Why?

1. Apps, apps, apps. For PhoneDog purposes, the Apps Showcase is all I need. Last year at MWSF I saw Beejive IM and  i.TV for the first time and also got to check out a pre-release version of Slingbox for iPhone and some other neat apps. If all I get to see this week is one cool iPhone OS app, I'll be happy.

2. iPad Buzz. While I'm guessing there won't be an actual iPad in the house this week, every accessory maker and their Mom has already announced forthcoming lines of iPad cases and accessories. So I'm excited to talk to the Mac faithful to get their take on what iPad might mean to Apple's future.

3. AB and AL in SF. Going to MacWorld is a no-brainer for me since it's literally a 20 minute train ride from my office. Trade show in my hometown is a bonus. This year there's an extra bonus: Aaron and Adriana made the trip out to the Bay Area for some sightseeing and visiting, along with show coverage. So I'll get to hang with them today.

4. Mac Stuff. Hey, I'm not entirely about phones. I use Macs to write, edit video, and do the rest of the computer-related parts of my job. So if I come across something interesting that promises to make my workflow more efficient and/or fun, I might just have to bust open that piggy bank to pick myself up a new doodad for my computer.

Check back all day today, tomorrow, and over the weekend for PhoneDog's coverage of MacWorld 2010 from San Francisco, CA.