While we've mentioned the possibility of an Apple/Oracle marriage before, the rumors are hotter than ever as November 10th's mystery announcement draws ever nearer. The boldest statement comes from (who else?) MacOS Rumors, whose trusted source made them swear on a stack of bibles not to divulge the information until the stock market's close this afternoon. And following sightings of Apple and Oracle lawyers meeting all week long (to discuss the pre-nup, no doubt), it now appears more likely than ever that the engagement will be announced at Apple's big shindig, probably once again after the stock market closes.

Larry Ellison and Oracle, you may recall, have publicly revealed their intentions toward Apple in the past, but Apple's family wouldn't give their blessing. And no wonder, given Oracle's somewhat caveman-like whim to buy Apple's hand in marriage. But with Steve Jobs' rise to power, the friendship between the two bigwigs may just be enough to make the marriage work.

Do the two companies face a future of marital bliss? Or will Apple be left at the altar? Tune in Monday to find out...

But there's much more planned for the Monday announcements, and details are leaking despite the lockdown Steve's clamped onto Apple gossipers. For instance, consider the BusinessWeek article on the new Apple direction, which predicts that a web-based direct-sales model and network computers both figure heavily in Apple's future. Both of these elements have surfaced before, and they both seem very probable as candidates for a Monday announcement, despite how Jobs himself referred to a pre-release draft of the article as being "way off" in its predictions (but added that he "can't help" improve its accuracy).

As we mentioned yesterday, <http://store.apple.com/> had been accepting web connections, though no default page had yet been loaded. BusinessWeek seems to think that Apple will flounder as it tries to shift its sales focus, citing Hewlett Packard and Compaq as examples of companies who made a thorny transition to build-to-order sales. After last year's Apple Club debacle, we at AtAT are almost inclined to agree that Apple has much to learn about successful e-commerce.

As for the Apple NC, what could be more natural, following an Apple/Oracle wedding? We notice, however, that the bouncing baby NC is due in January, and it's already November... And rumors of the gestating NC have been circulating for months. Shotgun wedding, anyone?

On a less matrimonial note, there's a cute little tidbit over at MacCentral. Seems that many of the animated GIF files on the Microsoft web site were created with GIFBuilder, which is a Mac-only application. (And it's excellent-- we use it ourselves.)

This isn't the first time that evidence of heavy Mac use has surfaced in Microsoft materials. For instance, a large Mac cursor figured heavily in a web graphic they used once. Microsoft brochures and marketing materials are often Mac-produced. We hear that the Windows 95 boxes themselves were designed on Macs. And we've been told that Microsoft even uses Macs to produce their internal weekly newsletter. Well, what did you expect? Microsoft didn't get to be where it is today by passing up the best tools for the job...