Microsoft's launch next week of Windows 7 could paradoxically help Apple's Mac sales, analyst data shows today. Broadpoint AmTech researcher Brian Marshall notes that, historically, every major Windows release in the past 10 years has coincided with a significant spike in Mac purchases either during the same calendar quarter or within a few quarters afterwards. The effect was particularly pronounced for Vista, as Mac sales surged in fall 2007 and have been very high ever since.
