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The continued willingness of other tech journalists to take itsApple reporting even semi-seriously is a potent example of the Jeane Dixon effect at work. Dixon (1904-1997), the celebrated Americanastrologer/psychic, told Parade magazine in 1956 that the president elected in 1960 would be aDemocrat, and that he'd die in office. That was enough to lether claim that she'd predicted John F. Kennedy ‘s assassination, a triumph that she spent decades milking.Even though she later predicted that Nixon would win the 1960 election. And that World War III would breakout in 1958. And that cancer would be cured in 1967. Like Dixon, Digitimes still has an audience. It doesn't seemto matter whether the prognostications it publishes come true ornot, and no amount of being wrong is enough to ruin its reputation. That's not to say that Digitimes never gets anything right— sometimes it breaks news that actually turns out to benews. As I thought about the $799 MacBook Air rumor and the chancesit might pan out, I decided to revisit old Digitimes stories to geta better sense of its batting average. I ended up fact-checking 25of them. Here's what I found: The Digitimes story: " New iPod may have wireless capabilities ," 8/16/2006 The rumor: Apple will "soon" take on Microsoft ‘s wi-fi-enabled Zune MP3 player by releasing an iPod withbuilt-in wireless capabilities — and is already trainingAsian salespeople how to demonstrate them. The source: "market sources" The upshot: Apple doesn't introduce anything which is called an iPod andhas wi-fi until more than a year later, when it launches the iPodTouch. Even today, more conventional iPods, such as the Nano andClassic, don't have wi-fi. The Digitimes story: " Sources in passive component industry say AMD-based Apple notebookin the works ," 11/15/2006 The rumor: Apple is planning to release a laptop that uses a processor fromAMD rather than Intel. The source: "Taiwan passive component makers" The upshot: Almost six years later, Apple still isn't using AMD CPUs. The Digitimes story: " Apple and ViewSonic to unveil 17-inch widescreen LCD monitors soon ," 11/27/2006 The rumor: Apple, among other companies, plans to release a 17″ desktopdisplay by the end of 2006 or the first quarter of 2007. The source: "industry sources" The upshot: Apple releases no such product, then or later. The Digitimes Story: " Apple and HP to launch LED-based notebooks, Taiwan LED makersunlikely to benefit much, say sources ," 1/3/2007 The rumor: Apple will start selling laptops that use LED backlighting in thesecond quarter of the year. The source: "industry sources" The upshot: Hey, it does ! The Digitimes story: " 15.4-inch MacBooks to begin shipping in 2Q, say sources ," 2/15/2007 The rumor: In the second quarter of 2007, Apple will release a MacBook with a15.4″ screen. It'll join the 13.3″ MacBook and15.4″ and 17″ MacBook Pros in the company'sportable lineup. The source: "industry sources in Taiwan" The upshot: Apple releases an updated version of the existing 15.4″MacBook Pro in the second quarter. But it never introduces a plainMacBook at that screen size. The Digitimes story: " Apple reportedly to postpone Leopard to support Windows Vista ," 3/23/2007 The rumor: Apple will delay the release of OS X 10.5 Leopard from April toOctober so its Boot Camp feature can support Windows Vista out ofthe box. The source: "industry sources" The upshot: Apple does postpone Leopard's release until October. But it says that it's doing so because it needs to borrowsome OS X engineers to finish up work on the iPhone. The Digitimes story: " NAND flash-based iPod video to put strain on supply, say componentmakers ," 8/6/2007 The rumor: A new iPod based on NAND flash memory will introduce videoplayback. The source: "sources at Taiwan-based component makers" The upshot: Apple does announce flash-based iPods with video playback inSeptember — both the iPod Touch and the first iPod Nano withthat capability. The Digitimes story: " Apple reportedly considering Intel platform for iPhone ," 10/3/2007 The rumor: Apple may use an Intel "Moorestown" processor designedfor "MID" (Mobile Internet Device) gadgets in anupcoming iPhone. The source: "OEM sources" The upshot: If Apple considers making an Intel iPhone, it doesn'tmove forward with the idea. The Digitimes story: " MEMS gyroscopes to find their way into smartphones in 2009 ," 12/11/2008 The rumor: In 2009, Apple (and other companies) will put gyroscopes intotheir smartphones. The upshot: Apple does add a gyroscope to the iPhone — but only in 2010,with the iPhone 4. The Digitimes story: " Wintek to supply touch panels for Apple netbook, says paper ," 3/9/2009 The rumor: Apple has a deal with Taiwan's Wintek to supply touchscreens for a new netbook. The source: a report in The Commercial Times , another paper that publishes a lot of Digitimes-like gossip— but only in Chinese, sadly The upshot: A false alarm, unless you consider the iPad to be a netbook. The Digitimes story: " Foxlink developing micro projectors for handsets, say sources ," 7/6/2009 The rumor : A Taiwanese company is finishing work on microprojectors whichApple and other companies will reportedly build into phones in thesecond half of the year. The source: "sources with Taiwanese handset makers" The upshot: Apple still hasn't released any products with built-inprojectors. The Digitimes story: " Apple tablet PC reportedly delayed until 2H10, with OLED model nowincluded ," 11/19/2009 The rumor: Apple is delaying the release of its unannounced tablet from Marchuntil the second half of the year. It'll offer a 9.7″OLED-screen model for around $1200-$1500 and a 10.6″ LCD onefor about $800-$100. Subsidies for 3G contracts could bring theprices down. The source: "sources from component makers" The upshot: This story almost has more errors than it does sentences. The Digitimes story: " Apple to launch 22-inch touch-enabled all-in-one PC in 2010, sayspaper ," 1/18/2010 The rumor: In 2010, Apple will start selling a 22″ Mac with a touchscreen — its first Mac so equipped. (Steve Jobs himself hadsaid in the past that touch interfaces didn't make sense for conventional PCs .) The source: The Commercial Times The upshot: Apple still hasn't released any touch-screen Macs. 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