This is not an April Fools joke. The sky above may be closer than it appears.

Microsoft and Sun Microsystems announced a surprising armistice yesterday, ending years of public acrimony ...

In a separate announcement yesterday, Sun said it would lay off 3,300 employees, or 9 percent of its work force.

Both McNealy and Ballmer spoke of how much the balance of power in technology markets had shifted ...

... Sun will increasingly become a software company ...

Nick Carr was right. IT doesn't matter, and Gates, Ballmer, and McNealy agree with him.

Don't buy the line about competing with each other. Microsoft and Sun find themselves on the same side in a desperate struggle to remain relevant, and both are losing hard and fast.

Here's a meme for you:

IT is 1, and there is only 1 IT. You're either with IT or against IT. Resistance is futile; you will be assimilated.

Coming in May: Carly Fiorina and Michael Dell join forces!

Coming in July: General Electric buys IBM; market sighs.

Don't Panic!

Microsoft and Sun End Long Acrimony in Surprise Accord