If the can't-miss story of Macworld Expo 2010 was about from the annual trade show, the theme of Macworld 2011 might be this: Apple presence at the show doesn't matter so much anymore. The community of fans who love their MacBooks and iPads is big enough (as is the community of vendors who want to sell them software and peripherals) that the event can stand on its own.

Paul Kent, general manager of this week's (the "Expo" in the name has been dropped) in San Francisco, says his staff expects to host around 250 vendors who will be pitching their wares to an expected "solid increase" in attendance over last year's 21,000 people. The conference programs start on January 26, while the expo/show floor opens on January 27. Macworld ends on January 29.

"The first thing that was learned was that we re-established that attendees really like Macworld," Kent said of last year's Apple-less expo. "This year, we're looking at ending up close to where we were the last year Apple participated in 2009."

Outside analysts say the annual Macworld gathering might have lost a little heat without, say, Steve Jobs on hand to show off a cool new gadget. But there's still plenty to look forward to. Macworld 2011 attendees can even show their enthusiasm for the show by .

"I think the fact you won't see any new [Apple] hardware will have an affect on what consumers show up, or the media, or things like that," said Ben Bajarin, director of consumer technology practice at Creative Strategies, a tech-consulting firm. But "there are two sides to it. There's obviously still a vibrant Mac community, and this show is a good thing for members of the Mac community."