To me the last decade was the decade of the internet.  Sure it started in the 90′s but the true infrastructure and adoption occured just [...]]]>

Hindsight is always rather entertaining.  Looking back you see just how naive we were and how we felt at the time that we had progressed further than what time shows.

To me the last decade was the decade of the internet.  Sure it started in the 90′s but the true infrastructure and adoption occured just in the last decade.  So people are correct in thinking that “we’re there”, we’re done”, “the internet has been built”.  NOPE. SORRY. WRONG.  The 2000′s saw the building of the World Wide WEB.  The key word is WEB.  It’s the tubes, some islands, but not the complete network rather just the road system in virgin territory.

The 2010 to 2020 is the decade of the Network.  We’ve been talking for 20 years about your fidge calling you to tell you that your out of milk.  Well this is the decade that you’ll really, truely see that come true.

The biggest factor that has occurred and took over a decade to build is that of the network.  It was this how long it took to get always on networking into everyone’s home (talking Canada of course).  People are adding more and more WIFI network hubs in their house.

So the stage has been set.  It’s been set for everything to finally begin to network.  Think of all the products you can have in your home that have become available in the last year that are web enabled: Blu-ray players, Playstation 3, xBox 360, Televisions, skype phones, printers, picture frames, etc.

The landscape is now beging to be populated with products that can actually talk to each other.  But this is just the start.  Wal-mart has forced all suppliers to ensure their products are RFID enabled.  What is RFID?  A small electronic bar code that can be read from a distance by various devices – such as electronic scanners at the cash register or by various other readers used for things like anti-theft or inventory.

RFID has the added attribute that every single product made on earth could hypothetically have it’s own unique identifying “pin” number.  You could for example follow a coke can from production, through the supply chain to the trash can, all the way to the recycling factory.   Add in GPS or other Geo-based tracking you could know where that can was at all times over it’s lifespan – yes it is very big brother.

But the positive side is that our homes using similar technologies will help result in the truely smart home – where everything begins communicating with everything else.  Your stereo could pass along to your car your favourite songs, your furnace would kick in cause it knows your only 4 blocks from home – but only in the den and kitchen because those are the only two rooms you use on a Tuesday evening.  I’ll expand in future posts on what future trends I precive.

For good or for bad, the next decade will see advances in everyday computer technology and interaction like you’ve never could have imagined.  (Think iPhone in 1995).

e the rise of the network.  Last decade was that of the Internet, and the 80′s were that of the computer.

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• Toshiba’s Cell TV will convert 2-D images to 3-D instantaneously (venturebeat.com)
• Netflix Watch Instantly Coming Soon to the Playstation 3 (cinematical.com)