The old rumors about Umax are heating up again, as MacOS Rumors reports that the last surviving large Mac clonemaker will indeed be signing up to work for "the Man." Yes, according to a Rumors source, it may come to pass that Umax will make Apple's low-end Macs.

Starting on January 1st, Apple's new low-end machines will actually be Umax's C500/600 machines, possibly with redesigned cases, but with an Apple logo attached. This could be a great thing-- after all, Umax makes some awesome boxes, including overall system improvements like their CacheDoubler technology, but while still keeping prices in the realm of the home user on a budget. This deal allows them to sell directly to Apple instead of to end-users, thus eliminating their need to pay MacOS licensing fees. Apple, on the other hand, gets to divest resources from designing and building the lower-margin home and consumer systems, and can concentrate on the more lucrative higher-end boxes-- while still selling to the home users. I mean, let's face it: Apple's not the best when it comes to building a killer home system for a great price.

If this is all true, Rumors says we'll hear news of the arrangement at MacWorld Expo in January, and the first Apple-branded Umax-built Macs will appear as early as just a few weeks later. How's that for a surprise twist?

The San Francisco Chronicle has an article about how Microsoft's attempt to extend Internet Explorer's marketshare is only the first step in Bill Gates' master plan to hypnotize all computer users "to buy Microsoft software they don't need, browse the internet for wasted hours on end and believe that Bill Gates is a nice guy." Their eventual goal is to create a new race of humans completely under Microsoft control.

Finally... Somebody else gets it! We're sure some poor naïve readers will shrug the article off as a humorous piece of fiction, not realizing the debt we owe to those brave Chronicle writers who sacrificed their previously-unscrambled brains to spread the word of Bill's Planetary Dominion Plan III. But those of us who know better will remain ever-vigilant.

(By the way, in case you're wondering, we at AtAT are immune to the brain-scrambling effects of Bill's diabolical device; our grey matter was already permanently scrambled a couple of years ago from trying to understand the rationale behind Microsoft Bob. What were they thinking??)

Well, when it comes to Clone War victims Power Computing, the fat lady hasn't sung yet, but she's warming up her vocal cords. The last bastion of Power Computing information, PowerWatch, has all but given up on the beleaguered company. Today they posted that several sources have confirmed that "Power is no longer selling PC's, and that they're basically closing out all remaining MacOS systems to employees for dirt cheap."

When the final death knell is sounded, we'll paint our PowerTower Pro black and stick a lily in the CD-ROM tray. Alas, the candle that burns brightest, burns briefest...

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe ... attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion ... I watched C-beams glittering in the dark at Tannhauser Gate ... All those moments will be lost ... in time ... like ... tears ... in rain."