As expected, all of Apple met this morning to hear Steve Jobs talk about the State of the Apple. The Mac-using world held its breath and teetered on the edge of its seat, ready for anything: speculation ran wild in some circles about whether Steve would take the CEO post himself, or introduce another to step into his shoes; other factions expected to hear that the newly-rechristened Filemaker, Inc. was to be sold off; and those way out on the edge even reported that Apple may have been purchased outright. But as MacWEEK points out, what really happened wasn't nearly so dramatic: Steve declared that the next big product announcement would be in March; a new TV ad campaign will kick off later this week; he mentioned the new G3-based Powerbook (code-named Wall Street); and Apple plans on tackling the home and education markets this fall. In addition, he spent a little time going over the new "exclusive retailer" arrangement with CompUSA.

Is that hollow feeling of disappointment ringing any bells? Well, it's not all that surprising if you're experiencing déjà vu; after all, today's let-down was just like the November 10th non-event on a smaller scale. If you recall, the buzz preceding that media circus was legendary. Rumors flew about a buyout by Sun or Oracle, or major announcements about the Apple NC project (which still isn't public, incidentally). Instead, we got a formal announcement of the Powermac G3's and the build-to-order Apple Store, both of which everyone already knew about.

So what keeps fueling these rumors of impending high drama? If you ask us, it's all due in part to the souped-up imaginations of Mac users, given the high concentration of "content creators." Mostly, though, it's because of the sensationalistic and irresponsible coverage that often passes for news on the internet. We blame ourselves. (That doesn't mean we're stopping, of course.)

Cloning's not dead in the Mac world, right? Sure, the two biggest players are gone-- Power Computing sold its Mac OS license back to Apple and fell apart after trying to launch a foray into the Wintel market, while Motorola basically said "the hell with this" and quit in a tizzy. But UMAX remains, as do its sublicensees like PowerTools and MacTell, who have carved out a decent niche selling very low-cost Mac clones or high-end ultra-expandable boxes. It's not the open-systems gala that we all expected CHRP to bring about, but it's still something, right?

Right. At least, for a few more months. Word from the multiple sources over at O'Grady's PowerPage is that Apple plans not to renew UMAX's license agreement when it's due to expire this July. That deep-sixes UMAX's Mac business, as well as all of its little Mac-cloning family; no more six-slot G3-upgraded Supermacs for video editing, and no more sub-$1000 MacTell complete systems.

UMAX is apparently allowed to sell clones through the end of the year if its license lapses in July, though the fate of its sublicensees is unclear. On the bright side, Mac shoppers no longer have to strain their choice muscles when they go to buy a new system. And the Clone Wars will finally gain a sense of closure.

In today's episode of "Redmond Justice," the tide starts to turn as a federal appeals court rules that Harvard professor Lawrence Lessig must cease and desist his investigations as a "special master" in the Microsoft-Department of Justice conflict. The Washington Post has the gory details. Lessig, you may recall, was appointed by Judge Thomas Jackson to study the "complex technological issues" defining whether a web browser is an application or part of an operating system. (Hey Judge, got three minutes? We'll happily explain it to you.)

Microsoft requested that Lessig be pulled from the case, because 1) they claimed he was biased against them, as supposedly revealed in Lessig's personal email, and 2) they take issue in general with the prospect of a private citizen having so much power in this case. Jackson refused their request, calling their accusations of Lessig's bias "defamatory." So Microsoft appealed, and-- surprise!-- after only one working day, the appellate court ordered that Lessig suspend his investigation until at least April 21st, when the court will hear Microsoft's argument as to why the whole case should be thrown out of court.

The appellate court gave no reason for its order, though it's only a temporary measure until the April court date. The Justice Department does not plan to appeal the decision, according to the Computer Reseller News, and news.com reports that having his special master suspended means the ball's back in Judge Thomas' court (so to speak). Most people expect him to lay low until the April hearing, which is good news and bad news; it means that "Redmond Justice" may go on hiatus soon, but at least it'll be back next season-- and given how long it seems this case will run, chances are good for the show getting renewed for future seasons, as well.