As Mac fans, we have at least one reason to like the current state of the economy and the raging price war in the personal computer industry: it's all sure to thin the herd a little. Walk into any Circuit City computer department and it becomes obvious that, despite their ravishing good looks, it's easy for the Macs to get lost amid a sea of Wintel brands. While that problem is partially solved by the advent of the Apple retail stores, the fact remains that Apple is competing in a crowded market, and if the current economic bloodbath takes out some of the competition, at least Apple might get a little more relative mind share.

And it's not just the little guys who are going under; even Compaq, once mighty enough to swallow Digital whole, was floundering badly enough to opt to be swallowed in turn by Hewlett-Packard. That's not quite as satisfying as watching them spiral slowly into insolvency, granted, but it's still a good thing for Apple-- right now Macs are fighting for shelf space with Pavilions and Presarios, but after the merger, the Compaq brand will be going away, and presumably the Presarios will follow. And there will be much rejoicing.

Hold the phone, though, Betty-- while we've been considering the Hewlett-COMPAQard merger a done deal, apparently the shareholders of the respective companies haven't even approved the marriage, to say nothing of the feds. And if The Register is correct, it sounds to us like the whole shebang is in a bit of peril; reportedly the Hewlett family, who owns five percent of HP, has "announced its intention to vote against the takeover." (Perhaps they don't consider Compaq to be "HP material"?) And to make things worse, David W. Packard (the son of HP's co-founder) has now "expressed concerns" about the proposed merger. Since "the Hewlett and Packard families together control 17 percent" of HP's stock, this deal is starting to look less and less likely.

What's all this mean for Mac fans? Well, if the deal falls through, it might mean that ugly Presarios will continue to take up retail space that should be occupied by Macs instead. On the other hand, it might also mean that we all get to watch Compaq sink ever deeper into oblivion instead of suffering the relatively less embarrassing fate of a simple takeover. So at least we've got that going for us.