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Technology Stocks : General Magic -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kurthend who wrote (6244)	5/31/1999 11:24:00 PM
From: dwight martin	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 10081

Well, Kurt, I'm not the one to comment authoritatively on this issue, but looking at this web page, wapforum.org, I find much that is interesting about WAP. Seems like in many of the described uses, WAP is a poor substitute for VUI-driven intelligent ("Kenyan") agents: What kind of services can you access using WAP? Lets start with an example scenario: Imagine stepping out of an office building to go to the airport, using your WAP-enabled wireless device to check the traffic congestion, followed by the train timetable and then purchasing a train ticket on-line instead of driving. On the way to the airport, you select your aisle seat and check in for the flight, reserving a special meal. Unpack your raincoat after looking up the weather at your destination. If you read the bolded print, you can see they are not suggesting that you use a WAP-driven device while driving your car, LOL)Other types of services which can benefit from WAP technology are : Customer care and provisioning, message notification and call management, e-mail, telephony value-added services and unified messaging, mapping and locator services, weather and traffic alerts, news, sports and informartion services , e-commerce transactions and banking services, online address books and directory services and corporate intranet applica[t]ions. NOTE: This page does not have the words "voice," "VUI," or "speak." Seems to me that I would like to have WAP on my celphone for pure text , but I would want have MagicTalk VUI and Kenyan agents more.

To: Kurthend who wrote (6244)	6/1/1999 9:54:00 AM
From: Mark Oliver	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 10081

Hi Kurt, This is a continuing story. The end game of all these companies is to create tiny computers that are phones. They'll try to find the best balance between size and function. They'll use the net for everything. WAP is a forum to create network access devices. VUI is interesting, but you know it will never be as useful as a sweet blend of voice and graphic. So, is the Portico model a stop gap solution? I think so. I think we will see need for VUI for several years, but eventually the wireless network will get fast enough bandwidth and devices will become so compact and functional that a Portico product will have lost its place. But, a lot can happen in 2 years and I don't believe GM is a one trick pony. I agree with the following post that agent technology will play a greater role in information transactions and I believe VUI will continue to play a role in these future devices. GM is a member of WAP and I think they have a contribution to make. Still, look at Wireless Knowledge. They are far from a VUI/virtual assistant. They have a road map that goes on and on. Hope that helps. Regards, Mark