I feel a need to follow up on a post I published back before MacWorld in January, NCLB: No Computer Left Behind. The new MacBook Air, now the thinnest notebook computer on the market, was introduced, as the rumor stated. However, the machine goes well beyond working only as an internet appliance that requires internet connection to live and work.

The notebook computer, that easily fits inside an envelope, has a hard drive (or solid state drive) and plenty of horsepower in the microchip, a 1.6GHz or 1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, custom built by Intel for Apple. It has a large enough display to work with old eyes (like mine).

However, it lacks an optical drive, though one can be purchased separately. This means that software must be downloaded from the internet if you do not purchase the $99 optical drive accessory. Yes, there is a small internet/network dependance of which I spoke earlier--something I don't care personally. And my final gripe, the battery is built into the machine and cannot be replaced by the user.

A beautiful, thin, light machine, I am glad my significant worries were not realized.