Web
"Smart" Cars
Microsoft has
announced a strategic alliance with Bosch to create a comprehensive family
of in-vehicle computing and communicating products. Based on the Windows
CE for Automotive software platform, these devices will combine Internet
connectivity with traditional car navigation and route-planning functions,
as well as entertainment systems for drivers and passengers
Source: CEWire
Cybersister's Comment
Experts predict that 50 percent of all new cars and 90 percent of the
higher-end models will have telematics-capable appliances by 2006 (source:
Strategy Analytics). With more than 55 million new cars sold annually and
650 million cars registered worldwide, the potential for automotive
telematics is staggering. According to the Westwind Research Group,
subscription services such as Internet access for these devices is
expected to become a $20 billion industry by 2005. Americans alone spend
more than 500 million ``commuter hours'' per week in the car (source: U.S.
Department of Transportation, 1995).
All over the industry, there are deals and alliances being formed to
put a combination of a cell phone/web browser/ personal digital assistant
(PocketPC or PalmPilot or others) in your cars. It's a potent mix.
Motorola, Delphi, Ford, GM, Ericsson, have all anounced deals to create
net-connected devices for cars.
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GPS - "Global Positioning
System"
The GPS
(Global Positioning System) is a "constellation" of 24 well-spaced
satellites that orbit the Earth and make it possible for people with
ground receivers to pinpoint their geographic location. The location
accuracy is anywhere from 100 to 10 meters for most equipment. Accuracy
can be pinpointed to within one (1) meter with special military-approved
equipment. GPS equipment is widely used in science and has now become
sufficiently low-cost so that almost anyone can own a GPS receiver.
GPS
receivers are becoming consumer products. In addition to their outdoor use
(hiking, cross-country skiing, ballooning, flying, and sailing), receivers
can be used in cars to relate the driver's location with traffic and
weather information.
CyberSister's
Comment
Of course,
this becomes much more important technology as we move into an
increasingly mobile society, and with the growth of "m-commerce" or mobile
commerce. This is a crucial 'enabling' technology, as it will allow
personalization, customization and mobility to converge. For example, a
GPS systems determines that I'm walking by a shoe store, and knowing that
I'm a fashionable Cybersister (personalization) who is a size 7
(customization), and that they just happen to a have a few stylish shoes
in my size available, the ad could pop up on my handheld computer or cell
phone. Depending on the application, it could either be generated
by the consumer (i.e. I connect up and ask where's the nearest shoe
store that carries my size) or, automatic notification from the store
(maybe I've signed up for a notification service). Starting to get
the significance of this technology?
Here's a
relevant quote: "Mobile Internet isn't about GPS, UMTS, or WAP, but about
the applications that use these services. "Without mobile
applications that require broadband connections,
third-generation services are redundant." - Tim Sheedy, senior
research analyst for IDC's European Wireless and Mobile
Communication
Canadians
Going Online and Going at High Speeds
When it comes to per
household Internet access, Canada is the world leader, according to a
study by PricewaterhouseCoopers,
which found that nearly half of the Canadian population is now online.
The Canadian Consumer Technology Study 2000 study found that 48.2
percent of Canadians are online, compared to 43 percent in the US, 38
percent in Australia, and 26 percent in Europe. Canadians also lead in the
average hours of Internet use per week with 5.1 hours/week, up from 3.9
hours/week last year. The net average hours per week online in Europe was
3.2 hours, while Australia was 3.6. The US average hours spent online fell
to 4.2 from 5.3 in 1999, which may be a sign that as Americans become more
comfortable online, they make more efficient use of their online time.
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| What's a
Ripple Effect Rock? Well, think of a rock thrown in a lake, and how the
water ripples outward. This section of the newsletter covers developments
and technologies that we think might soon cause a "ripple effect" in
business or society.
What's a
"Snortel"?
DigiScents, Inc., is developing a technology for digitizing,
transmitting, and synthesizing scent. Their Digital Scent Technology
includes software components and a peripheral device called the iSmell
Personal Scent Synthesizer. The iSmell is a speaker-sized computer
peripheral device that attaches to the serial or USB port of your personal
computer and plugs into a standard electrical outlet. The iSmell emits
naturally-based vapors into the user's personal space. The device is
triggered either by user activation (like a mouse click) or a timed
response (as is the case with a DVD ScentTrack). And what have they
named the Web portal that supports this interesting-looking device? Why,
the "Snortal," of course! (http://www.snortal.com/)
Cybersister's
Comment
Oh my. What
can you say about an "iSmell" device? The company has signed strategic
research agreements with Proctor and Gamble, the company that brings us
our shampoos, soaps, detergents, etc.. What are the applications?
Digital Aromatherapy? Smelly greeting cards? And others that I dare not
mention.......
One
Special last minute note:
I know I'm
a bit late, but since I missed the Remembrance Day issue (Nov 11),
I'd like to make this special tribute to our brother-in-law, Michael
Curdyck, a veteran of the Canadian peace-keeping efforts in Bosnia, and
all other men and women, worldwide, who fought for freedom.
"Everybody
can be great.
Because anybody can serve.
You don't have to have a college degree to serve.
You don't have to
make sure your subject and your verb agree to serve.
You don't have to
know about Plato and Einstein to serve.
You don't have to know
Einstein's theory to serve.
You only need a heart full of grace.
A soul generated by
love."
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.
That's it for now! Have a great week!
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