I've seen some recent mailing list registration messages asking about
the status of ALSA. Be aware that it is unlikely that anyone will
respond to the messages put into the mailing list subscription
registration requests. They are just helpful for us to know who the
target audience is.
As far as ALSA and other board features go, just check out the board
diagnostics page: http://code.google.com/p/beagleboard/wiki/BeagleBoardDiagnostics
along with the resources on Dirk's great http://eLinux.org/BeagleBoard
site.