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To: Urlman who wrote (4633)	3/30/1998 1:53:00 AM
From: cksla	Respond to of 8581

urlman- sorry, i don't have a java browser. here's an article i believe i previously postedbut thought it worth doing again: 3. THE CONSUMERIZATION OF COMPUTING DEVICES Tech Trends to Bet On 1.Centralized Computing 2.What Gates Doesn't Own3. Consumerization of Computing4.Wires5.Hewlett-Packard6.Disk Rhymes with Risk7.Cisco's Challengers8.PC Consolidation9.Speech Recognition10.Still Wintel The fastest-selling personal computer device of all time is ... the PalmPilot. 3Com announced that in November it will have sold more than a million of the hand-held devices since April 1996. That's a faster adoption rate than for the first PC, the first Macintosh, or the first laptops. The 5.7-ounce device (which costs $250 to $370) translates handwriting to text; stores your calendar, address book, and other data; and synchronizes with your PC. The Pilot is so hot that Cross sells special PalmPilot stylus-pens, and leathermaker Dooney & Bourke offers tony $50 PalmPilot cases. The PalmPilot's success is the most visible sign of a new market for specialized microprocessor-powered devices. Such gadgets are less replacements of the PC than complements. Says Charlie Federman: "As computing power moved from the mainframe onto the desktop, so we'll see more computing power in our hands than on our desktops." The shift is under way. According to Deutsche Morgan Grenfell, the vast majority--3.6 billion--of microprocessors sold last year were modest ones known as "embedded processors." They are the brains in phones, cars, washing machines, and an estimated 14.5 million Tamagotchi virtual pets. That's simplicity for you: Kids who can't read a manual learn to feed and walk a digital dog. Up next: devices connected wirelessly to networks. AT&T just announced a cell phone that can fish your E-mail off your PC. Chris Shipley, editor of the trend-watching DemoLetter in San Francisco, expects to see home Internet servers that wirelessly control a range of appliances, allowing you to, for instance, regulate your alarm system from your browser at work. Shipley calls Hewlett-Packard, which has built hand-held devices for years, "a sleeper that will win big." Sun Microsystems' Diba subsidiary designs Java-based networked gadgets. Microsoft is also a player, with software for set-top boxes and hand-held devices. Another winner may be Wind River Systems of Alameda, Cal., the top vendor of operating systems and programming tools for embedded processors. Sales for the year ended in January grew 45%, to $64 million. Even the Mars Pathfinder is guided by Wind River software. -- D.K.