My The Horizon Report 2010 Choice
By Lyle Tompkins
My choice from The Horizon Report 2010 to talk about is Mobile Computing because it is related to my dissertation topic of Cloud Computing. One of the overall goals of Cloud Computing is to make all of a small to medium sized company’s data available anywhere at any time on any handheld device such as a smart phone. With so many Smart phones available and so much competition between Cell phone vendors, this future product expected to take one or less years is here now in its primitive but effective form. I can get my email and certain company data on my I-phone in most coffee shops and restaurants and it is sized for my screen when I get it so that I can easily read it. The best toy I have purchased in the last 5-6 years was this I-phone. I had a Nokia small just phone previously and used it only as a phone. This smart phone so far has taken the place of my Franklin Day-Timer, my address book and my GPS as well as has functioned as a phone with very versatile settings for different tones for different callers.
More than the Smart Phone, mobile computing is taking on shapes like netbooks, smartbooks, ipads and lately your automobile dashboard. Who knows what form is next – maybe your wristwatch if anyone wears those anymore. How about a shirt or blouse cuff? Maybe a shoe which is far enough away from your eyes that those of us who are arm-length challenged in reading menus won’t need those cheater glasses to see our shoe screen.
