We're opting for a mellow end to a mellow week, here, folks, and since nothing much of dramatic import is currently churning the Apple waters, we thought we'd pass along a cute and highly encouraging nugget o' knowledge that lends still more credence to all the recent rumors that Mac sales are enjoying a dramatic spike thanks to rampant love of the iPod. After all, what better way to start a weekend than by basking in the limitless possibilities of a future in which Macs outsell all Wintels combined? Not that we're claiming a 50%-or-better market share is actually in Apple's cards, mind you (at least as far as the Mac is concerned), but it's hard to imagine that Apple will continue to command a mere 2ish percent of the personal computer market what with all the activity we're seeing at one major online retailer.

That retailer is Amazon.com, which, in addition to being an online source of everything from cheesy metal electric guitars to gourmet coffee to laser scopes (and, um, books), also happens to sell computers-- including Macs. And what's cool about that is that Amazon always lets you see what the top sellers are in any given category, and the ranking is updated every day. So check it out: faithful viewer RAY I noticed that Amazon's top-selling notebook is the entry-level iBook, and Apple has a total of three laptop models in the top ten. Cool, no?

Indeed, if you look at the top sellers among computer stuff in general, Apple fared either slightly better or slightly worse, depending on your perspective. True, the number one product in the Computers category is a Linksys wireless router, but second and third place are held by iPod minis, and iPods of various types hold four of the top ten slots.

As for desktop systems, well, that's where the seriously encouraging stuff is happening. A practically frightening seven of the ten best-selling desktop systems are Macs, with iMac G5s taking the top three slots. Now, we don't know if Amazon somehow appeals more to Mac users than to the Wintel crowd (we can't imagine why), but clearly Macs are selling like crazycakes there, and it's hard not to get visions of double-digit market share dancing in our heads, no matter how improbable we know that to be. Still, how can you look at those rankings and not grin like a maniac?

So the next time you're bumming about Apple's piddling little market share, remember that those numbers include vast fleets of PCs sold into enterprise markets, a giant sandbox where Apple doesn't even try to play. Amazon sells to consumers, just like Apple, so take a spin over there and look at their daily top sellers. We can't predict exactly what you'll see, but we bet it'll probably make you feel loads better.