Who needs software?

I am currently looking into buying a new laptop. The burning question for me is: do I buy a powerful computer which will set me back a lot of cash or should I get the bare-bones model and save? Why even consider the bare-bones laptop? Well more and more of computing sits in the cloud not on your computer. I edit and host my videos on Animoto. I use free online image editing software. Here's a cool link to check out which reviews some really easy to use and mostly free web-based applications for image editing. My photos have a home on Picaso and Facebook. My presentation slides, excel-like calculation sheets and word-type documents live more and more with Google Docs. Why? Because its easy to access and edit them from anywhere in the world. from my laptop or iPhone or even Internet cafe. Because they are mostly free and easy to use. My email and calendar also live in the Cloud. I last used Microsoft Exchange and Outlook over 5 years ago and really have not missed them at all. Maybe this is when the Apple iPad makes the most sense. A window to the cloud.

Work in the Future

What will our work environment look like in the future? What technology will be available to facilitate communication and collaboration? Will there still be a desk? What about a keyboard and mouse? Hey, will we still have an office? Will it be a virtual me (or is that a Mii?) at work? This blog entry taps into some interesting videos and websites that attempt to see into the future and predict how our 9-5 lives could evolve. One fast-moving field that is sure to shape this vision is Smart Surfaces. This is where Microsoft have been placing their bets lately. Check out the Surface, a table that lets you interact and manipulate documents, videos, and images simply by touch. It also recognizes objects placed on the table and pulls up information about them. Microsoft Office Labs Vision is a great video to get us started on this journey. The year is 2019. I wonder how Apple fit into the equation (Hello iPad)? Microsoft have also created a video about how our Healthcare could be managed in the future. The Virtual Physician and use of smart surfaces (in the office) can't be that far off. Use of augmented reality and tablets are commonplace. I like the clever use of plain wall surfaces to display graphical dashboard-like information and pull up images and photos. Instant video communication coupled with rich data sources seems to be a theme. One word sums up this vision TOUCH. ABC explore how some companies are using Virtual Worlds for their office space and conducting remote meetings and events using webcams and document-sharing tools. Employees can be anywhere in the world and never even see a physical office or building. Not sure Second Life will be around in ten years - but the idea is intriguing. What can we learn from the University of Essex iLabs which are intelligent spaces designed to encourage creative thinking and problem solving. The BBC discuss the Diary Wall and that in the future walls could become screens showing diaries, documents or video conferences. Maybe we could take a few pointers from the likes of CISCO and Google. Link at CNN. You need to travel to NY to get a glimpse of IBM's BlueSpace, their next-generation workspace. Of course, no office user experience could ever be complete without the advice and wisdom of Jakob Nielsen. He is considered a foremost expert on usability. Lets hope this consideration is not forgotten in our epic search for the workspace of the future. At the end of the day, thats what its all about.