You read about all these wonderful technological advances or some grand prediction like "the paperless office" or "Y2K is a crisis without precedent in human history", and the industry is just abuzz with activity about the next new fad, but in reality these things rarely make a splash on the market and wind up on some "Top 10 ideas that never had a chance" lists.
Have you seen those wild fashion shows, where the models are wearing clothes that go way beyond unpractical? A skirt 80" in diameter on a 24" waist, or a bra made from traffic pylons? People in the fashion industry frequently herald some of these as the next wave in fashion, but to this day the only pylons I see are the ones around construction sites.
The best things about technology are rarely the shockers. Stable, well-written code. Secure communications. Practical and well thought-out purpose which has meaning to the greatest demographic of users.
Show me one person who demands interoperability between mobile, PC, television, PVR, microwave and their friggin' toaster, and I will show you 1,000 people who want nothing more than to print a web page on letter-sized paper.
In the end, both come away disappointed. Oh well, it sure looked fetching on the runway.
Wade Stewart is the Managing Member of Stewart and Son Computer Services, LLC in University Place, WA and serves as a trusted partner to many local small and medium sized businesses.