Microsoft is rumored to be planning to unveil something tablet-esque during tonight's CES keynote. Meanwhile the Apple iTablet hype has been swirling for months now, along with wild rumors of it doing everything from saving the publishing business to unlocking nuclear fusion. Advice for the sweaty gentleman picruted above: 

If you drop another boring Windows 7 HP Touchsmart tablet on us, we'll know Microsoft is planning to remain in 2001 and sit this market out.

But if you drop Courier or a Courier prototype, or some unknown hot Zune/WinMo7 slate, we'll know it's go time.

All accounts I've read lead me to believe Courier isn't close to being ready. Still it's fun to imagine how the nerd-o-sphere would absolutely combust if Ballmer waltzed out there with this: