Speaking of Switch ads, how come former-Windoid-turned-Machead David Coursey hasn't done one yet? After all, when he gave the Mac a shot earlier this year, he began a rapid transformation from one of those dime-a-dozen anti-Mac tech columnists into a guy who now practically gushes over All Things Apple. He's even writing a book on switching from Windows to the Mac. And faithful viewer davethedivine noted that the man's latest article over at ZDNet AnchorDesk is a self-admitted "blatant attempt to get you into an Apple Store and convince you to maybe even buy something while you're there."

Lack of a Switch ad notwithstanding, if Coursey actually manages to persuade anyone to go check out an Apple retail store, the good news is that now said people will have a decent chance of actually being able to find one. We lost count a good while back, but Apple sure didn't; according to a press release, this past weekend's two grand openings (in Denver and Emeryville) brings the total of Apple retail outlets to fifty. The big 5-0. That's significant for several reasons, not the least of which is that it means Apple actually hit its goal of having fifty stores up and running in time for the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend. It's always nice to see a company stick to a schedule.

There's also the fact that, with fifty carefully-chosen stores now under its belt, Apple now has retail locations within a fifteen-mile drive of a whopping 85 million people. That means that in the U.S., one out of every three Americans now lives less than fifteen miles from a big glowing Apple logo-- and considering that some conspiracy theorists attribute sudden, inexplicable platform switching like that of David Coursey to the of massive doses of Reality Distortion Field energy being pumped out of the giant illuminated store signs marking the entrance of each store, they're probably predicting a sudden unexplained increase in domestic Apple market share to roughly 30% within the next year or so. Of course, most of these same guys have also been putting waaaaaay too much nutmeg in their eggnog, but that's beside the point.

Regardless, the growth continues, and those fifty stores are soon to number fifty-one; Apple is planning a rare non-Saturday grand opening for the Apple Store Oakbrook this Friday, to coincide with its post-Thanksgiving orgy of retail delight. Mac fans of the Greater Chicago Area, prepare to welcome yet another new store amid "free stocking-stuffers, special values, and a chance to win a new 15-inch iMac." What better way to work off the Turkey Coma than by exercising your credit limit? And if anybody happens to see David Coursey stumbling around at said event with a glazed look on his face, well, you won't be particularly surprised, right?