Can't Get a Clear Signal on iPhone Sales

Look, we can go on surveying this nonsense until our eyes are bleary and it actually begins to make sense. But by that time, real numbers will have actually been released.

The task for you, the savvy investor, is to tread oh-so-carefully in a situation like this.

First, when it comes to such a well-hyped product, never base your decision on one article. If you do, The Business Press Maven will come to your house and put you in time-out.

You are never beholden to the one newspaper sitting on your desk or on the back of your sleeping dog. You can, for free, sample many different takes on the same charged issue. Do it. It will be abundantly clear when there are no easy answers -- even to basic numbers -- on an issue.

Second, be aware that there are different types of numbers. One is the number given for public consumption, generally known as the sucker's number. The other is the whispered number, the one a company might lean in and tell -- or even imply -- to analysts and investors.

Both numbers are essential to report, but some wet-behind-the-ear business journalists are not even aware of whispered numbers. You need to be aware of both numbers and make sure that who you are reading is, too.