What one word strikes the most fear into the hearts of the Mac faithful? We're talking about a single word that, when uttered, calls forth phantoms from the past so chilling, all those comforting thoughts of black ink, sales growth, increasing developer support, etc. just freeze solid and shatter on the floor. It's the word you avoid in mixed conversation at users' group meetings-- the word you can use to frighten small Mac-using children when you regale them with scary tales of the Dark Years. Yes, we're talking about-- Copland.

For the irrepressibly young among you (or the incurably forgetful), we're not talking about the 1997 Stallone flick. We're talking about Apple's abortive and resource-draining attempt to create a "modern" successor to System 7, complete with a new look, (mostly) protected memory, (mostly) preemptive multitasking, and a slew of other OS goodies. But the project dragged on for years until Apple finally realized that it just wasn't going to happen-- and they pulled the plug. That's when Amelio went shopping for outside help and eventually bought NeXT and rehired Steve Jobs, and now we're all waiting for Mac OS X, which looks like it'll be a winner. But the specter of Copland remains, as a constant reminder that even the most important projects can and do go awry.

Why are we bringing this up? Because O'Grady's PowerPage is whispering that all is not well with Apple's consumer portable, code-named "P1." It seems like we've been waiting for this thing forever, and the latest news was that it would finally be introduced at next month's Macworld Expo keynote. But the dirt dished at the PowerPage indicates that Apple is "having trouble even preparing a working prototype" in time for the show. In fact, rumor has it that an emergency meeting was called in Cupertino over this past weekend to discuss what should be done-- and among the more frightening questions allegedly asked was whether or not Apple should "scrap P1 entirely." Copland II, anyone? If things are really so far behind on the P1 project, is it possible that the lateness of the current PowerBooks and a "difference in style" with Apple hardware czar Jon Rubenstein were not the only reasons that ex-PowerBook development veep Mark Foster was "basically fired" last week? After all, if he mismanaged P1 development so badly that Apple must now decide whether or not to ship it at all, well... Keep in mind that this is all speculation built on rumor, and nothing more-- so far.