For the same cost as the original iMac several years ago, the new iMac provides a host of breakthroughs, including a stunning flat-panel display, blazing-fast G4 processor, the remarkable Mac OS X operating system, and a number of preinstalled software applications.Numbers alone can't do the new iMac justice, of course. After all, how do you quantify such attributes as friendliness, ease of use, freedom to convert an unlimited number of songs from your CDs into MP3 files, and a built-in fun factor that's clear off the charts? You might even say that the new iMac's most widely quoted statistic may be how fast it lets first-time users connect to the Internet - right out of the box. In the past that number has varied, depending on how long each individual owner paused to admire the iMac after unpacking it. And chances are, given the new iMac's futuristic good looks, this time around your first look could take rather a long time indeed.