Screaming headlines are a time-tested way to attract readers. Just ask the tabloids. Of course, there's usually more sizzle than steak in the contents. News.com screams "Mac Meltdown!"; Techweb says MOT and IBM are getting out of the PPC chip business. Wrong.
To begin with, MOT and IBM will remain in the PPC chip biz so long as there is a demand. MOT may cede production to IBM, but will continue to do development work. IBM will build them so long as demand warrants.
Meanwhile, back at Apple, coders continue to work on OS 8.01, aka "Bride of Buster," that will support CHRP (http://www.macosrumors.com). Apparently CHRP isn't really dead yet.
Steve Jobs is praised and maligned with equal fervor. His "vision" is questioned. Everyone except him is confused. But one thing isn't confusing. His oft-stated number one goal is to bring Apple back to profitability. UMAX aside, he's had to buy or bury the competition to do it. This is a tactic that usually wins praise for most other companies. Not Apple.
Many, perhaps most, Mac users are not shareholders. If they think about the subject at all, they view cloning as an abstract "good." More box-builders equates with platform health. Unfortunately, shareholders see things a bit differently.
We see cloning as a strategy that has divided a shrinking pie into smaller slices for Apple. The result has been a series of consecutive losing quarters that have called into question Apples survivability. This, in turn, has caused the pie to shrink further as people and corporations shy away from the platform. Steve Jobs has figured, correctly, that he has to change the perception of Apple as a sinking ship to stop the erosion. He's been vilified for his efforts. Frankly, I'm sick of it.
If the Mac OS is to survive, Apple has to be put on a firm financial footing. Period. Everything else is secondary in the short term.
Bob
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