Readers split on MS-Apple deal

When asked if this week's startling Microsoft (MSFT) deal was the booster shot Apple (AAPL) needed, NEWS.COM readers were of two minds.

Of the 1,209 readers who responded, slightly more than half--51 percent--felt that the deal was a good one for Apple.

The other 49 percent were skeptical about Microsoft and its motives in offering the cash.

Despite the lack of consensus, one thing is abundantly clear: NEWS.COM readers are a cynical bunch. Many of the naysayers were die-hard Mac supporters who argued that Apple didn't need to be "saved" in the first place. Other Macheads felt that the deal is the beginning of the end for Apple.

Apple announced at Macworld Expo in Boston this week a $150 million investment from Microsoft, an agreement to share patented technology, and default status on Mac machines for Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser.

"The funeral is not scheduled, but Apple is dead. You cannot deal with the tiger and live. Others have tried it, and lost. Like them, for Apple it is only a matter of time now," reader Jerry Rowe predicted.

Others pointed out that the $150 million investment means little to Microsoft; as Christopher Pott put it, "it's like a rounding error caused by a Pentium math bug. "

A vocal contingent felt that this was an obvious attempt by Microsoft to keep the antitrust watchdogs at the Justice Department at bay.

"For what may well be chump change, Microsoft gets to settle out of court a serious issue," Ryugen C. Fisher writes in.

Even the "yes" respondents weren't quite ready to hop into bed with Microsoft. More than one reader qualified a "yes" with a proverbial "but."

Those who feel that the deal brings credibility to the Mac OS still had reservations about making a pact with the "devil," as more than one reader referred to Bill Gates.

Some mischievous NEWS.COM readers, such as Colin Sanford, liked the deal merely because of the predicament it puts Oracle chairman Larry Ellison in:

"How P.O.'d is Larry Ellison right now?" Sanford asks. "He must have, deep down in his heart, hoped that he was going to be seen as the knight in shining armor. But no, Microsoft has once again stolen the thunder."