The McCrackenizer over at Technologizer has a great examination of the vagaries of Apple rumors, pointing out that anything that shows a purported Apple advertisement, anything in patent stage that someone actually finds, or anything said by an analyst is probably wrong.

As he notes, the patent drawings for the iPhone were filed just a few days before the actual event, ensuring that they couldn’t be found until long after the announcement. It’s gotten to the point that I’d prefer not to post analyst or patent rumors simply because they are so odd and wrong that it’s not even worth discussing them.

Sadly, that leaves all of us breathless Apple fanbois without a source for Apple news. Luckily, every once in a blue moon we get some actual information from the deep, dark cavern that is Apple but, sadly, this just encourages the next wave of fake rumors. I guess you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

McCracken gives us a few things we can trust, namely, last minute predictions by major news sources with “reporters” (WSJ, for example) or the things Steve (now Phil) doesn’t say i.e. video for iPods and, most interestingly, SJ’s recent dismissal of ebooks.