DIGITAL L.A. : FOR EXPANDED CONSUMER ELECTRONICS, X MARKS THE SPOT.

Byline: David Bloom 

It's been shrouded in mystery, wrapped in enigma. It even has a shroud of a name: Project X.

But VM Labs CEO and president Richard Miller, who used to develop new game platforms for Atari, thinks he has a winner that can radically expand the electronic game business, not to mention much of consumer electronics.

Project X, as Miller laid out in a recent press conference and will show off in the upcoming Electonic Entertainment Expo in Atlanta late this month, is a fancy new computer chip that replaces and improves on a set of other chips commonly found in computers, digital video disc players, cable settop boxes and digital television sets.

``We're introducing new technology that transforms passive digital video players such as DVD, direct satellite broadcast, digital settops, digital television, into interactive multimedia stations,'' Miller said.

The problem for the video game industry is that, though it quietly rakes in billions of dollars every year, only about 30 percent of homes have dedicated game ``consoles,'' such as Nintendo 64 or the Sony PlayStation, or computers capable of playing the games and other titles that are out there, Miller said.

Project X is a media processor, handling video, audio and more at an eye-popping 1.5 billion instructions per second, to allow developers to create what Miller calls ``truly film-quality'' graphics and sound.

``It'll blow your socks away,'' Miler said. ``The text and graphics look really great, better than they do on any other platform.''

For comparison, the chip runs about 40 percent to 200 percent faster than the fastest Pentium II computer chips out these days, Miller said. And like a computer chip, it will allow the information to go both ways, out to and back from a viewer.

An ``absolute deluxe version'' of a digital entertainment machine using the technology would have a digital screen, small video camera and phone line for videophone calls, Internet surfing, e-mail, video gaming and interactive titles, DVD and high-definition television movies and more, Miller said.

VM Labs also has deals with most of the ``top-tier'' content producers to create or convert games, reference, education and other interactive titles that could run on Project X-equipped machines, Miller said.

``We're focusing on education and edutainment, because these electronic devices are much more of a family purchase than a console, which is a pure toy,'' Miller said.

But the company is actively recruiting all of those companies that make classic action games, because they know that no platform survives without that base of fanatical support. The good news is that conversions of existing titles should be relatively simple, Miller said, with ``Doom'' ported over to Project X in just two days.

Interactive Oscars in Atlanta

Also at E3 will be a new awards ceremony sponsored by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences.

The AIAS is trying to create an interactive biz equivalent of the Oscars, recognizing the best titles and tech in 21 different categories for game consoles, personal computers and online sites.

The Interactive Title of the Year finalists include:

``Age of Empires,'' ``Blade Runner,'' ``Final Fantasy VII,'' ``GoldenEye 007,'' ``Parappa the Rapper,'' ``Quake II,'' ``Riven: The Sequel to Myst'' and ``Turok: Dinosaur Hunter.''

To find out the winners, you either can book a flight to Atlanta or check out the AIAS Web site at www.interactive.org.

The Apple also rises

It's still kind of dicey whether Apple Computers will survive in an increasingly Window-ed world, where even traditional strongholds such as digital post-production are being impinged upon.

But the company is fighting back with its best ad campaigns since ``1984,'' smart cost-cutting and, believe it or not, some really great new technology, such as an unbelievably fast, cheap new Powerbook and a nifty all-in-one computer for schools called the iMac.

The iMac is kind of like the old Mac Plus, only it has a huge hard drive, great Internet capabilities (hence the i in iMac) and a superfast G3 chip all wrapped in translucent plastic with a bargain $1,299 price.

The machines prompted CNET.COM vice president and editor Alice Hill to come up with a list of products she'd like to see from Apple. Among her suggestions:

The zMac: built-in Valium dispenser helps users relax after a long day of tech slavery. Speakers auto-play soothing music.

The Hello Dalai: screensaver with catchy pro-Mac musical numbers as sung by people who appear in the ``Think Different'' ad campaign.

The Hawking: successor to the now-discontinued Newton reads your e-mail to you in a creepy electronic voice.

The xxxMac: specially designed for downloading dirty videos.

Windows 99 for Mac: If you can't beat 'em ...