Rosie's Ramblings

By Sandra Rosenzweig
     
      Revolution Revelations
      This past year, the 25th anniversary of the personal computer (all rise), wasn't all that notable for revolutionary breakthroughs. But, as far as evolutionary payoffs, it wasn't all that bad. We need these plateaus occasionally, to figure out what inventions are good for and how to make them usable. Invent first, make it work later. So, let's take a look at which creatures grew lungs in 2006 and climbed onto dry land.
     
      Thumb-Thing Better
      One example: USB thumb drives went completely mainstream. Until this year, I used these little, finger-long 256MB thumb drives (about the thickness of two American quarters) mainly to carry my current files with me. It was a bit of a risk, this—because the thumb drive, or key drive, fell out of my pocket whenever I leaned back in a chair—but otherwise a great way to stay up-to-date. However, I still had to pull the files off the key drive and into temporary storage on any foreign computer I used. What I really needed was a way to carry files on the thumb drive along with the programs that run those files. Then Siber Systems got my attention with its AI RoboForm application, which could keep even the temp files off any other computer in the solar system. Secure at last—as long as the drive didn't fall out of my pocket.
      I took a SanDisk Cruzer Micro with me everywhere. In addition to RoboForm, it held the html file of my Mozilla Firefox bookmarks. And to keep the files on my various PCs and my key drive current with each other, I started using Siber Systems' free GoodSync.
      Somewhere along the way, hardware developers created the U3 type of thumb drive. U3 USB keys store not only specially made programs but also the user's data—usually secured by passwords. Lately, I've switched to a 512MB Memorex U3 TravelDrive ($39.99). (They go up to 4GB capacity, but $179.99 is out of my price range.) The one I have came with several trial apps preinstalled—P.I. Protector Mobility Suite from Imagine LAN, plus a link on the U3 launching app, called Launchpad, to other free and for-fee games, utilities, mini word processors, and more. Including Roboform. And the free office suite OpenOffice.org. And Firefox. I'll take the plateaus any time.
     
      Where Are You Now, Stephen Jay Gould?
      Evolution multitasks. While some technologies plateau, others experiment with their form rather than their substance. Take Seiko Instruments' new Smart Label Printer, model 440 ($159), for example. It sits on my desk, right next to my southernmost monitor. (Yes, I have a southerly monitor and a northerly one, and you can too. As long as your PC has more than one video port, you can arrange, say, your Microsoft Outlook window full screen on one monitor and use the other display for everything else.) Anyway, if you define "label" rather broadly, that's all it does—print labels, either just one or a huge list's worth. You can type in an address you want to print, or select one from your Smart Label Printer address book. (No, you can't just link the printer software to Outlook's contacts database.) Or, you can print file folder labels. And "Hello, I'm Fill in Your Name—I think you've already heard of me" tags. That sort of thing. Seiko's little black-and-white printer isn't as sexy as, say, a U3 USB flash drive, but if your handwriting is as miserable as mine is, you may be grateful for an easy and instantaneous way to make labels to stick on your envelopes.
     
      Social Animals
      In the past couple of years, give or take, some Web developers created a lot of rather convivial websites. Many are sites for teens or young adults who like to commune online. (A prime example is Facebook.com, which has managed to snare almost entire student populations.) Other developers "mashed" Google Maps with their own data to illustrate, say, the crime distribution for Dublin, Ireland, or multiple real estate listings for San Francisco, or a map of all local Craigslist rental listings. See for yourself—Google for 'em.
     
      Revenge of the iPod People
      The explosion of podcasts is another example of evolution in action. When Apple first released its iPod music player, it elevated the handheld-music-player market from an enthusiast's backwater to a money-making industry. It didn't take long for iPod fans to start making their own audio files (recorded lectures, their voice mail, even letters from friends and family—if they have digital phone systems and VoIP (voice over Internet protocol) service—that they then transfer to their iPods for listening to on the way to work. Everyone could make his or her own radio shows. And the pioneers added a twist: They syndicated their podcasts. (The technology is modeled after that of text newsfeeds—you subscribe to the shows that interest you, and then the news syndicate sends a link to each new show so you can download your favorite programs and listen to them on your handheld of choice.) Still, for me at least, listening to those podcasts of news and how-tos takes much longer than scanning through the same material in text format. And, as with most text newsfeeds, I got bored—and stopped listening.
      Then, over a year ago, people started figuring out uses for the technology that turned podcasts into one of those aha!-now-I-get-it Web services. My favorite example is educational podcasts. I find podcast technology especially useful for learning languages.
      Not interested in language lessons? How about podcasts of news stories and commentaries from the BBC or the San Francisco Chronicle? Or of blogs for you to listen to on your way to work? Podcasts—like videocasts—started out as amateurish broadcasts from people with hysterical laughs but then found their métier in truly practical uses. And they're here to stay.
     
      ET: Phone Home Cheaply
      I mentioned VoIP. I've been testing it periodically for more than a few years now—eight? ten? Until last year, Internet phoning technology was complicated to use and unsatisfying to the ear. Then came Skype and Vonage, with clever advertising and marketing plans and fairly intuitive interfaces. Now, people don't talk about VoIP—they talk about which phone plan offers them the cheapest calls. In other words, VoIP and cellular providers are competing head-to-head against the big, established phone companies. Who woulda thunk?
      This past year has also brought the maturing of (usually free) open-source products and services. With the whole user community pitching in on coding, consumers see innovations and upgrades much faster than in a proprietary world such as Microsoft's. Meanwhile, Web giants Yahoo and Google have nibbled past Microsoft's toes and up to the venerable behemoth's kneecaps. (Recalling what happened to the dominant railway and airline companies of yore, I expect Microsoft will be forced to split the pot three ways.) Such mutations aren't random. They're planned, and they happen a lot quicker than biological evolution. The year 2006 provided plateaus on which technologies could rest and establish themselves—or dwindle into extinction. How much time can Microsoft's money buy it against the inevitable survival of the fittest? My guess: Microsoft is a dinosaur.
     

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