Indiana University Patrick Proctor was here

2010 January 01

Dumb terminal redux

Currently, netbooks are being sold successfully. Essentially, they are small, low-priced, cramped, underpowered laptop computers that are designed for light internet and word processing duties. These remind me of the dumb terminals of the 60s and 70s. For those too young to remember, a dumb terminal is computer with only enough processing power to connect remotely to a more power computer. Back then, you would probably be connecting with a mainframe.

In addition cloud computing is becoming more and more popular. While still a buzzword, government agencies are getting set to adopt Google Docs for its document storage and collaboration. Clearly, working on a remote server is coming back into vogue, but for different reasons than the ones in the past.

In the past, there was incentive to work on remote computers because they were far more powerful than the more affordable computers of the day. People would get time on a mainframe and carry out complex calculations, often for research purposes. Now, remote computing is used for off-site backup as well as easy sharing and collaboration amongst several people.

With the rise of cloud computing and underpowered netbooks, could we be on the verge of seeing even lower-powered computers coming into the market? Could these computers have the explicit function of connecting to services like Google Apps and Gmail and having the user do all work on the internet, rather than storing data and executing software locally? The next few years should reveal that. There are some serious caveats to putting all faith in the cloud and keeping your data there. Google Apps and Gmail are great when they work, but sometimes they go down and disrupt life for millions of users who rely on them heavily already. What happens when you cannot access an important paper or get to your email?

Would you be willing to ditch your regular computer and move to 21st century dumb terminal?

2010 Indy Auto Show uninspired

My grandfather and I have attended the Indianapolis Auto Show every year for as long as I can remember. It is a winter tradition for us. In 2006, I started looking at cars for their innovative features, fuel economy, and use of alternative fuels, such as electricity or liquid natural gas.

Thus far, the showings have been disappointing. Rather than taking the opportunity to showcase the concept cars that they do at the Detroit and Los Angeles auto shows and get people excited about upcoming products, the Indy Auto Show is little more than a marketing event for the Indianapolis Star and a few local car dealers. Any cars that make an appearance there are already on the lots and have actually just been brought to the Indiana Convention Center from car lots on the edge of the city.

What people need to see now more than ever is that the Big Three are working on new stuff that will change how think about and use cars. This will get them excited and may hold off on purchasing a foreign car. That may be damaging to short term sales, but would probably be better in the long term for any auto maker that is showing off cars that are two or three years off.

The Chrysler and GM areas were conspicuously empty of people, but full of gas-guzzling cars that have poor quality and waning appeal to the average consumer. GM could have generated more excitement and even become a center of attention in the show if they had a Chevy Volt on display. Having the much-hyped plug-in hybrid for people to actually see and touch would excite a lot of people. However, GM was not directly represented there, just dealers. So, no Chevy Volt and no real excitement.

Hopefully, 2011 will be more exciting, but I will not hold my breath.