It’s not often these days that you get any kind of public offering in the market for tech companies–so a lot of people in Silicon Valley and elsewhere are looking at the fall spinoff of AOL very carefully.

That’s because, even though AOL is widely considered to be an also-ran by Silicon Valley (same as it ever was, actually, even at the height of its power in the late 1990s), many are very interested in serving on its board.

According to many sources, exactly who will be on what will likely be a 10-12 member board of directors for the company is up for grabs, once it decouples from owner Time Warner (TWX).

Thus, AOL, with Time Warner’s top execs’ involvement, sources said, has compiled a list of about 70 possible candidates–picked, suggested and self-nominated–and is now proceeding to vet them and begin the process of asking people to serve.

It should not be a tough sell. After all, despite its recent struggles, AOL remains one of the major Internet sites, with massive traffic, several well-known products and a large advertising business.

In addition, people seem inclined to see what kind of overhaul new CEO and Chairman Tim Armstrong can pull off and whether the former Google (GOOG) exec can work some magic.

He’s been formulating plans for what stays and what goes in the company as he tries to shine up the apple–or put lipstick on the pig, depending on your perspective–for investor consumption.

That includes keeping the access business, which many thought would be sold off, and putting many of the companies it has recently acquired–including its pricey Bebo social networking site–in a separate ventures unit, which will try to attract outside investment or sell off assets.

The strategy will focus AOL on several key areas, including media, local, “scaled” advertising and communications.

The jury is out on how successful Armstrong will be at innovating at AOL. But with almost zero IPO action and little prospect of any in the near future, it’s about the only such game in town as it moves to what is likely to be an October spinoff.

To help Armstrong sort through the choices, BoomTown is now compiling a suggestion list of fancy names I would recommend, and will do another post on that next, along with a general idea of what stays and what goes.

Until then, here are the broad outlines of what AOL needs to look for in a board:

One media mogul, one consumer electronics exec, one entrepreneur, one publishing exec, one Time Warner exec, one social networking exec, one advertising exec, one entertainment/Hollywood exec, one telecom/mobile exec, one consumer brand exec, one Internet mogul, and, of course, Armstrong.

And, as a definite requirement, given that there are way too many on way too many Internet company boards: No venture capitalists need apply.

According to numerous sources inside and outside the company BoomTown has spoken to this week, board Chairman Roy Bostock (pictured here) has been asserting a new CEO will be named by the new year.

Only 28 more shopping days left until management clarity!

Well, maybe not so much.

Why?

Because there’s actually no “official” search committee that has been appointed by Yahoo’s board, sources said.

Instead, an informal group–with Bostock and board member Gary Wilson at the lead, with help from all the rest of the board–is conducting the effort jointly, along with exec search firm Heidrick & Struggles.

It’s almost like a Berkeley collective!

The board, though, has apparently made a list of six–I have no idea why that is the number chosen–clear criteria for the new leader of Yahoo (YHOO).

The first is that the candidate have “extensive” experience as the CEO of a public company. Another calls for media and advertising expertise. And mergers and acquisitions experience. Also strategic skills.

That’s a tall order, of course, to deliver on in such a short time.

In addition, the idea of bringing in at the same time a No. 1 and No. 2 exec has been considered, with one stronger in media and the other in product and technology.

It is hard to find an exec with skills in both, even in the best of situations.

Think pairing someone like News Corp. (NWS) COO Peter Chernin with Google (GOOG) exec Tim Armstrong or DoubleClick exec David Rosenblatt with, say, Yahoo CTO Ari Balogh and you get the concept.

But many who have spoken to board members at Yahoo said they get the distinct impression that they are leaning toward one of their own–former Nextel head John Chapple, former media exec Frank Biondi, Jr. or former Microsoft (MSFT) exec Maggie Wilderotter (pictured here).

That is due to wanting someone who has operational skills, but also can get things moving at Yahoo, while also being able to continue to work with Yang.

He will remain on the board and regain his title of Chief Yahoo. Sources said Bostock and other board members believe that Yang remains an important and beloved figure at Yahoo among the rank and file and needs to remain involved going forward.

Another key reason for wanting to pick an insider is that Bostock has also intimated that Yahoo was ready to do a deal at any time in the next week or so to merge with AOL–with or without a new CEO in place.

Consummating that might irk an outside candidate, who would have to manage the complex merger without input into its making, rather than a board member, who has been involved.

Talks between Yahoo and AOL have been never-ending and due diligence extensive, as this column has previously reported, although slower of late, because of the uncertainty around Yahoo leadership.

And the price–or, more specifically, the percentage–Yahoo has been willing to fork over to AOL owner Time Warner (TWX) has been the key sticking point, especially as Yahoo’s stock has waned in price.

Yahoo has long wanted to give Time Warner about 20 percent of the merged company, while Time Warner has wanted one-third. At current prices, that’s about $3 billion in value versus $5 billion.

But, if such a deal could finally be struck, it might be a dramatic and apt swan song move for Yang (pictured here), which could inject a bit of excitement into the mostly lackluster situation for both Yahoo and AOL.

Yang and others at Yahoo have also long felt that the company would have more leverage with Microsoft if it also controlled AOL–when and if it formally restarts its talks with the software giant about some sort of search deal.

Interestingly, many close to the situation said that there is still resistance among the “old guard” of the Yahoo board to doing a search deal at all.

New board member and activist shareholder Carl Icahn has loudly called for such a partnership with Microsoft.

But there is still extensive internal debate about whether it is wise to decouple search from Yahoo, many sources said, even if it brings in massive guaranteed revenues and allows Yahoo to cut costs in its engineering ranks.

Said one person close to the situation: “A lot of what has been going on is the board trying to figure out what kind of company does Yahoo aspire to be. That determines the type of person they bring in.”

How much do I love the Internet?

Muchety-much after seeing this interview that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin gave plastered all over the Web, in which the former Republican VP candidate gives a local Anchorage television station an interview as a Thanksgiving turkey is being slaughtered right behind her.

Actually, I cannot exactly tell what the hapless workman is doing to the poor turkey in question, because he keeps coming in an out of the frame, carrying the feathered bird by the feet, not sure if he should be doing whatever he is doing as Palin speaks.

But the worker does leave and then return in the course of the interview and then turns on some funnel-shaped device that seems to shake up the bird in an awful way. Twice!

Still, ever the trouper (and sanguine hunter, it seems), Palin obliviously keeps up the turkey patter, having just “pardoned” another turkey earlier.

Such is fowl fate.

Here’s the video (and, after seeing it, tofu might look more palatable on Thursday or you can give to Farm Sanctuary’s Adopt-A-Turkey Project, which commented on the Palin interview):

BoomTown might have been remiss in my post yesterday on top candidates for the Yahoo CEO job, after the news Monday that Jerry Yang is stepping down, by leaving out several key possibilities.

Yesterday’s roster included News Corp.’s Peter Chernin, Google’s Tim Armstrong, Kevin Johnson of Juniper Networks (JNPR) and also two Yahoo board members, among others. (The main internal candidate, Yahoo President Sue Decker, seems unlikely to get the nod.)

So here is an addendum to my initial list–all of whom are Yahoo (YHOO) outsiders.

Tom Freston:

Chernin is not the only media mogul whose name is being bandied about–the other prominent one is former Viacom head Tom Freston.

Freston apparently got shafted by the–let’s be polite here–disturbingly volatile founder of Viacom (VIA), Sumner Redstone, for not buying MySpace. In fact, News Corp. (NWS), which also owns this Web site, did. But Freston remains a well-respected and creative exec and has been dabbling in the Internet space since leaving Viacom.

Also, Oprah and Arianna love Freston–which is all I need to know.

Jeff Jordan:

Jeff Jordan, the former top eBay (EBAY) exec who is now the CEO of OpenTable, was also on the short list for COO at Facebook, a job that went to former Google exec Sheryl Sandberg.

While the restaurant reservations Web start-up has been headed for a public offering, that event has obviously been pushed out indefinitely by the econalypse, which might be just the impetus to convince Jordan that bussing tables all day is too dull.

Some speculate that Yahoo could buy OpenTable and get Jordan in the process.

Richard Rosenblatt:

Another interesting idea is Richard Rosenblatt of Demand Media, a company that Yahoo was sniffing around not too long ago.

The network of social-networking sites and apps maker is an innovative play in the space and might give Yahoo some much needed Web 2.0 DNA. Demand could still be bought by Yahoo, in order to put Rosenblatt into place.

(Rosenblatt, for those who do not remember, ran the company that owned MySpace, and he was key to selling it to News Corp.)

Also, Lance Armstrong likes Rosenblatt.

Shelby Bonnie:

A reader actually made the excellent suggestion of former CNET head Shelby Bonnie, who is now investing in start-ups. Bonnie is another steady exec–despite leaving CNET, now owned by CBS (CBS), under an options backdating controversy–and is well-liked in the Internet industry.

Yahoo would be a much bigger job than he has ever held, although he certainly has both tech and advertising experience online.

David Rosenblatt:

Lastly, especially if Yahoo is interested in an exec who has turnaround talent, there is probably no better a choice than DoubleClick CEO David Rosenblatt. An experienced online advertising exec, he is also sharply outspoken and knows how to get companies in line and fast.

He is also impossibly rich after Google (GOOG) bought DoubleClick out from under–wait for it–Yahoo recently. While he is still running the show for Google, after having decided to stay, Yahoo might present an interesting challenge for the very savvy Rosenblatt.

Please see this disclosure related to me and Google.

In advance of tomorrow’s elections, here’s a pair of videos of the two presidential candidates, Republican Sen. John McCain and Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, talking about tech.

While Obama has many more supporters in the tech and Internet sectors in terms of numbers, including Google (GOOG) CEO Eric Schmidt, McCain’s include Cisco (CSCO) CEO John Chambers, former eBay (EBAY) CEO Meg Whitman and former Hewlett-Packard (HP) head Carly Fiorina.

And while tech is not exactly issue No. 1 with either of them, here is McCain talking about it in the entire interview he did at the fifth D: All Things Digital conference in 2007 (he also discusses Iraq and other topics in the interview) and a new, much shorter three-minute video just posted by Obama on tech policy:

As BoomTown has noted, one of the best things to come out of this election has been the very funny and very topical humor that has been on "Saturday Night Live" in this political cycle.

Headlined by Tina Fey's perfect impression of Republican VP candidate and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, the offerings from the comedy television show has been biting without stooping to the rank meanness from so many other places by both sides.

Last night, Republican Presidential candidate John McCain--who has been on SNL before (his "John McCain Sings Barbra Streisand" skit was really a gem from that appearance)--was in two skits on the show and did a great job in both.

The first was a really clever opening sketch in which he and Fey as Palin appeared on the QVC cable shopping network, sheepishly explaining that they could not afford to buy time on the major networks as Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama did last week.

Money quote from McCain: "I'm a true maverick, a Republican without money."

Along with a set of "John McCain Pork Knives" and "McCain Fine Gold" (with Cindy McCain as the comely demoer), Fey (as Palin) goes rogue and starts selling "Palin in 2012" T-shirts.

In a second appearance on "Weekend Update," McCain did another nice turn, running through a series of new strategies to win, such as "The Sad Grandpa" and the "The Reverse Maverick."

Here are the videos:

Opening QVC Sketch

Weekend Update