What is Next Big Thing in Computers?
 

Just tapping the Pelican Brain Trust to see what you folks think will be the next big thing(s) in computers (i.e. where will the big $$ be for programmers?). I got involved in the financial services industry back in the late 80's when they were moving from paper securities to a completely digital paradigm and that has kept me employed for 15-odd years - enough to let me ignore the whole internet boom and bust. But that application is pretty much matured by now. I am thinking the internet is yesterday's news. Same with voice recognition systems, most animation stuff...even things like neural networks seem to be old hat these days. So where do you folks think the big dollars will be in the next five to ten years?

For example, there was an article recently about some breakthroughs in "non-algorithmic" models for artifical intelligence - mostly involving parallel processes hitting huge databases. Seems interesting. I also saw some stuff about people developing distributed processing models in order to use networks of relatively cheap pentium PC's to emulate supercomputers. Slick idea if it works.

Comments? Informed predictions? SWAG's?

I've been working on this thing called Skynet.

Security, security, security.

I personally think the next big thing is the mobile web industry, software/programming for digital phones, more automation in the automobile and more mobile technology.

security, hackings and attempted hackings are not a rare occurance at all. once you're "hooked up to the interweb" be prepared for the worst.

It certainly seems like they're building the infrastructure for wireless on a big scale. Seems like the next killer app will do something new in that domain.

a dual band internet to make full size pages viewable on handhelds - less memory intensive graphics.

The Internet?! Pffft. Is that thing still around?

JP

Works, and works well. Most of the "computers" in the Top 100 are commodity based clusters, as opposed to big iron like Crays,etc. Check out Mozix and a few other projects for an idea on how it all works...

Also, have you thought about embedded development, RTOS stuff, etc?

Just bought a TRS 80 by this company called Comodor...wow...fast but expensive.

LOL. The internet? That's so 90s.

badcar - interested in a Z-80 assembler manual, or a C64 CP/M module/kit? Both, along with an original TRS-80 Model 4 (dual drives, more RAM, white case) manual is sitting here at my desk....

ummm, sorry. the Trash 80 was Radio Shack. Commodore had the PET, the C64, C128, SX64, Amiga... ;)

Years ago, I was lucky enough to work at a Research Facility located in beautiful Maa-lee-boo. Memory storage via a hologram was one lab project...not sure what ever became of that...

A new game called "PONG" supposedly really high tech!
:D

We just attended a class that most major Telecom co's are moving to. VoIP.

THIS is going to be the "next" big thing. No need for telephone handsets etc... a call can just ring to your IP enable device ie palm/laptop/ pc etc.

I guess this is where the computer part comes in.

Nearby at Bell Labs they invented a glass cube that was capable of storing large amounts of data using light. Great thing was that it could be made very small becase there were no heat issues. At the time light computers were the thing to develop. Not sure where it lead.

Why change a good thing when we already have it?
http://www.ee.ryerson.ca:8080/~elf/a...acus-photo.gif

Hell yes!! Especially now that you can play the game "hands free" using a new technology to control the game using just your thoughts!!

http://wired-vig.wired.com/wired/archive/13.03/brain.html

Hmmm...I googled "RTOS" but I don't understand how a "real time" operating system is so different from any other operating system.

p2p in all your stuff (home, cars, etc). Streaming content over moving nodes and all of the issues associated with that.

Last year I attended a McData Storage conference (I'm in the IT storage industry). IBM is currently working on a similar concept, where some type of plastic was the storage media. Divots on the nano-level could be melted into the plastic, and again, a nano-based 'brush' could be run across the plastic to read the 0's (smooth) and 1's (divot). The benefits of this type of storage is that it is not magnetic media, which deteriorates over time, and the plastic can be easily 'erased' and reused.

But boy, if you use a nano-level brush to paint your house -- well, that's gonna take a long time!! :eek:

I'm assuming that the glass cube that Bell is working on is similar in concept as the IBM plastic media - non-magnetic and uses nano-technology to determine a 0 or 1.

Though I am biased, I think that the storage area of IT will be where you see the newest techologies emerge.

-Z-man.

storage is useless unless you can find what you want. And are able to work with the data.

meta data and virtual engines. mmmmm....

Doesn't Microsoft have a program where you can use Word/Outlook/Excel and what-not online, but store your documents on your HD? For a monthly fee, of course.

....and everything we're talking about needs to be.........secure.

not everything. wikis aren't (at least some/most of them).

HS - "Press any key to start"?
which key is the "any" key?
i see essk and ktaral but i dont see an any key
whew... all this computer hacking is making me thirsty.. think i'll order a tab
"beep"
no time for that now.. the computers starting!

button up that mumu and get back to work!

if I only had my poking stick...

Good point. I threw "data security" into google and found this five day course at MIT in crypto. The school has a great rep but...five days? I wonder if it actually worth the $2500 tuition? Seems unlikely...

http://professional.mit.edu/ApplicationFiles/web/WebFrame.cfm?web_id=308

Yeah, I know...obviously a slow day at the office...:D

Hmmm ... storage is important, sort of, except that storage capacities are already expanding at 10 times the rate of bandwidth. So you'd think bandwidth would be the next big push. But people are moving more towards wireless and handheld -- which has intrinsically less bw capabilities.

I think more likely the next big winner will be file systems that help you sort your data. We have too much stuff, and we can't organize it. A file system that kept track of meta-data, rather than simply blindly storing data, is probably on the horizon. Expect a fs which keeps track of file associations: A and B were used in conjunction with each other. C and Q have similar names. P and Z have related content. (shrug) Or maybe I'm wrong.

The other guess would be security. Wireless security right now is almost humorous. WEP looks for all the world (sort of) like a one-time-cipher-pad encryption, except we use the same key on every packet (sort of). One easy-to-use wireless encryption standard requires the key to be sent plaintext over the air, then returned encrypted. ???? Who thinks of these things?! We've obviously got a lot of development to gain here.

On the OS front, I keep hearing the winds of change against M$. More and more, I hear people saying that Mac (which is like BSD, except cooler) is excellent, and that they've never been so happy with their computer since they switched to Gentoo/Mandrake/SuSe. I suspect that M$'s massive size will take many years to eventually die. Between here and there, there will certainly be plenty of opportunities for repentance, and they may yet "get it."

Google is liable to turn into the next Evil Empire, in M$'s place. So far, they have a lot of really good ideas, and they're totally benevolent. Leadership will change, however. I'm not holding out hope in human nature.

(shrug) That's my $.02, and boy, did you get your money's worth. :)

Dan

Bionetworks

If my fridge can get plugged in to receive streaming content.

I may as well.

This is here. All the big Players have VoIP products running at various clients facilities...convergence has been the buzz for several years now. In 5 years you'll be able to count the major hardware VoIP provider on a single finger...CISCO...they are currently struggling with their large call center apps/voicemail, once they nail it, look out. Their marketing is intense...their VoIP marketshare will be rivaled by noone...

Someday we will exchange information on something called paper ...

Shhh, it very top secret...

D-base.

Well, there are already filesystems that store meta-data (this is starting to sound like /.), network based storage doesn't have to be too fast to outperform a harddrive (especially a slow/low RPM one), and with OS's booting off cd or usb key or ....

Oh, it happens. Typically during a grid outage and after the UPS batteries are drained...its amazing how folks are so lost during these times...on well...

Management, automation and integration solutions to help big enterprises manage all the crap people like us have sold them in the past.

Security, compliance and risk management is at the core of all this as someone has pointed out a couple of times.

Hello, yes i'd like to order a replacement coffee cup holder that my PC came with. You know, the one that pops out when you press the little button.

How about a computer with a simple on/off switch?

You eediot! You've let out the Navy's big secret! Now the Russkies will figure out why we're so efficient!!

Interesting. Based on the semi-consenus on this thread I did some google searches for formal educational programs concentrating on data security. And I'm pretty surprised to find almost no colleges or universities offering graduate study programs on the topic. Even MIT offered just one or two courses and no formalized program. Weird.