John McCain will announce the chairman of his vice presidential search committee next week as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee begins compiling a list of names for a potential running mate.

The Arizona senator said he hopes to make an announcement before the Republican convention in early September.

"We just started this process of getting together a list of names and having them looked at. ... I'd like to get it done as early as possible. I'm aware of enhanced importance of this issue given my age," the 71-year-old joked with syndicated radio talk show host Don Imus.

Speaking to reporters in Annapolis on Wednesday, McCain said it could takes weeks if not months for him to choose from a list of about 20 that includes "every name imaginable."

He said he wants to move quickly to make sure that no problems emerge when he unveils his choice, hoping to avoid a repeat of 1988, when George H.W. Bush named then-Sen. Dan Quayle to be his running mate but did not make an announcement until the convention in order to maximize the element of surprise.

"Quayle had not been briefed and prepared for some of the questions" that he would have to field, McCain said, without assigning any blame to Quayle himself.

"If I had a personal preference I'd like to do it before the convention to avoid some of the mistakes that I've seen made in the past as you get into a time crunch and maybe sometimes don't make the announcement right or maybe they have not examined every single candidate," he told Imus.

McCain did not name names or offer any other details of his search, but several GOP luminaries are among several floated by pundits and the press since McCain clinched the Republican nomination a month ago. Named as potential candidates are South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, former White House budget chief Rob Portman and former GOP White House rivals Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney.

McCain made his comments on his way to another alma mater, the U.S. Naval Academy. It was the third in a string of speeches during a week-long tour designed to introduce him to a wider, general election audience. McCain frequently jokes about not having been the most disciplined student at the Navy training college.

He told students and others assembled that it's their duty to make their country better, and Americans can do so by enlisting in the military or running for office."If you find faults with our country, make it a better one. If you are disappointed with the mistakes of government, join its ranks and work to correct them," he said. "There are many public causes where your service can make our country a stronger, better one than we inherited. Wherever there is a hungry child, a great cause exists. ... Wherever there is suffering, a great cause exists."

Before his speech, McCain stopped at an eatery in downtown Annapolis where crab omelets are on the menu and local and state politicians have gathered for decades for breakfast and shop talk

An American flag hangs over the counter with its five stools, and for nearly two decades, all business has come to a halt for a few seconds as the Pledge of Allegiance is recited.

McCain then headed to Florida, where he was to attend a panel discussion at Pensacola Junior College. McCain went to Pensacola after college for aviator training.

FOX News' Carl Cameron and The Associated Press contributed to this report.