Poor Phil Schiller gets no respect. Schiller, Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) senior vice president of worldwide marketing, is delivering the keynote to the annual MacWorld Expo later today.

So the 2 big Apple headlines ahead of the Expo are:

Steve Jobs isn't here.

But that's OK because Steve Jobs is healthy. The Apple CEO announced Monday that his recent weight loss was caused by a hormonal imbalance, and not a recurrence of cancer.

Even so, the Mac faithful are a little disappointed because this will be the first MacWorld keynote not delivered by Jobs since 1997. Apple also has announced it will no longer participate in MacWorld after this year. The company has decided that it doesn't need the annual expo the way it has in the past because it can reach out to its 100 million customers worldwide through its Web site and its network of retail stores.

So what does that make Phil Schiller? Chopped liver?

In fact, Schiller, has a reputation as a very good speaker and presenter. Some Apple cognoscenti are hoping that the low expectations for Jobs' replacement could be masking a surprise announcement.

Joyce Croker, a Web manager at UCLA who is attending her 20th Macworld, told CNN, "Schiller's a very good presenter. He has a sense of humor, and he has charisma."

A star turn by Schiller, or an unanticipated product announcement, could whip up enthusiasm among investors.