Here we go again: it's time for another round of the Retail Rumor Mill! Wait, where are you going? Come back, we promise we're not dredging up that old saw about Best Buy wanting to sell iMacs again. Nope, this time the retail chain du jour is Circuit City. Unless you're relatively new to the whole Mac thing, you probably remember that Circuit City was one of several national retailers that sold Apple's Performa series, back when an underpowered, overpriced, lumpy beige tower was Apple's idea of a consumer-targeted Mac. Unsurprisingly, sales weren't exactly inspiring; in addition to the Performa's high price tag and anemic performance, there was also the fact that Circuit City had adopted the Universal National Retail Mac Sales Guidelines: throw one lonely Performa in the corner behind thirty Wintel systems, leave it off (or, preferably, crashed), let someone steal the mouse and never replace it, and direct all sales personnel to ridicule the Mac platform and steer any Mac-interested customers towards whichever Wintel machine happens to be overstocked at the moment.

So when Apple cleaned its retail house a few years back, Circuit City got the boot. But now that Apple's become a winner in the consumer market again, Circuit City wants a piece of the action. According to AppleInsider, the chain is currently in negotiations with Apple to start selling iMacs and iBooks sometime soon-- probably when speed-bumped iMacs are announced (we're hearing April), or maybe at this summer's Macworld Expo. Apple reps and Circuit City execs are apparently trying to hammer out those niggling little details of staff training and product display. Here's hoping that solid sales of the iMac and iBook are giving Apple some serious leverage in these negotiations.

Not that any supposed leverage Apple may have gained due to its iSuccess seems to be doing all that much good with other retailers; most national retailers who signed back on to sell Macs are still offering a Mac buying experience tantamount to a kick in the eye. CompUSA locations seem to have improved on average, but Sears still has abysmal display skills (they somehow manage to make the iMac look bad) and the world's least helpful sales staff; it's like the Performa days all over again. And we needn't delve into Apple's abortive attempts to turn Best Buy into a competent Mac reseller. But hey, while our natural pessimism forces us to think any new deal with Circuit City isn't going to be much better, at least Apple's products will be in another 600 stores coast-to-coast. Exposure is everything.