Ten technological advancements we want in 2008, but probably won’t get

Back in August, 2006, I wrote a post titled, Ten amazing technological advancements you will likely never witness. The article still drives a large portion of the traffic for this blog, and covers a broad range of interesting topics. As we begin the new year, I decided to post something similar, with a slight twist. Instead of throwing out predictions, I am going to put forth those advancements we crave, and that are on the immediate horizon, but not for 2008. You can call them anti-predictions — in no particular order.

100 MPG in a production-ready vehicle

Would it surprise you to learn that in 1987, some vehicles could get better gas mileage than any production-ready vehicle on the road today? According to the EPA, if you were driving a 1987 Honda Civic CRX HF, you could get an estimated 57 mpg on the highway. Add a few safety regulations, a thousand pounds, one hundred horsepower, and you are among the privileged few who get half that number in mpg today — if you are driving another Civic.

The technology that can push the 100 MPG barrier exists, but the number of roadblocks seems to be insurmountable by any car maker in the U.S. or abroad. Emissions and safety regulations, production costs, speed crazed drivers looking for maximum acceleration, and governments concerned little with enforcing higher standards continue to upset those of us wanting a real change. Another year is likely to pass without a breakthrough.

Free wireless connectivity for all

In 2007, a number of cities began experimenting with free Wi-Fi for citizens. The bandwidth was limited to excruciatingly slow speeds, and the range was not much better than a stone’s throw from the hub. However, it was a step in the right direction for municipalities wanting to provide basic services like Internet, outside the confines of library walls. Cost appears to be the primary inhibitor, and it might take a goliath leasing out existing towers and bandwidth to set the stage for free wireless.

Even though Google will likely bid on (and purchase) the 700MHz spectrum in order to harness the power of the Internet through the “Gphone”, the company could also lend itself as a goodwill proprietor of free wireless. If it owns the spectrum, it could charge cities a nominal fee, which will in turn pass on the bandwidth to businesses or homeowners. Even with all the news coverage this has received in 2007, the entire plan is not likely to unfold for several years.

Intelligent, digital, personal search assistants

No one would argue that Google has an uncanny stranglehold on the business of search. If it were not for their, we are not evil tagline, I would be convinced they had made a deal with the devil. However, for all of the hoopla surrounding the accuracy of Google’s search algorithm, it takes me just as long to find “the long tail” results that I need through them as it does through any other search engine.

Instead of using the outdated page rank and link analysis theories to determine what is hot, an intelligent, personal search assistant would just find me what I want based upon my search criteria and search history. Using my desktop to index previous searches and to continually monitor my behavior, a personal search assistant could also find me information pertaining to my interests before I even search for it. There would be no need for RSS feeds. I could set my preferences, provide feedback, and let search come to me. I would not hold my breath for this software in 2009 either.

Free newspaper subscriptions on digital paper

One of the hyped technological advancements of 2007 was the mainstream adoption of digital paper, primarily through Amazon’s Kindle. Many technology geeks have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of this innovation, but not without some hesitation. It was obvious that the first few businesses who brought digital paper readers into our hands, would want to charge subscription fees for prime content. Why anyone would pay four hundred dollars for the device, and then shell out even more money to receive news that is readily available for free on the Internet is beyond my understanding.

Newspapers should use this as an opportunity to finally, and forever, break free of the old model. Anything beyond the paper should be beyond the price. If Amazon is clever enough, and wants to garner widespread adoption of Kindle, they would require newspapers to offer free subscriptions. The content will likely contain advertisements to help offset the cost, but readership would undoubtedly rise… just not in 2008.

Nanobots in action

For all the attention that nanotechnology now receives in the media, all we really have to show for it is stain resistant pants fabricated with nano fibers, and some really interesting videos on YouTube. It does not help matters that the word “nano” is now as ubiquitous as the phrase “web 2.0″, or even as ubiquitous as the word ubiquitous. Any matter controlled at the molecular level becomes nanofied (you heard it here first) only to garner the attention of investors.

Yet, the one thing that made nanotechnology so interesting, the nanobot, is still missing from the equation. Whatever happened to those intelligent little machines that can cure cancer, help people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, or rebuild appendages? How many movies and books do we have to be subjected to that demonstrate the destructive power of these nanobots before we can witness it for real? I would settle for in my lifetime?

Secure, Internet e-voting

It is no coincidence that secure, Internet e-voting made the way onto this list, given the upcoming 2008 presidential elections in the States. Registered voter status checks are a relatively simple task, so what gives with the delay? If I can file my taxes online, why not vote online? Public outcry against fraud is the primary reason that the government shies away from implementing this system. It is easier to keep tabs on a voter pushing paper into a ballot box.

If there is any evidence to how easy it is to rig electronic voting of any kind, you can find it by reading the Wikipedia entry on Clint Curtis. A former programmer, Curtis testified to the real threat of electronic vote rigging. The tale is a sordid affair, and has the makings of a movie, or at least a made-for-TV movie. Of course, the reliability of the allegations depends greatly on what side of the political fence you play on… what a surprise. Better luck in 2012.

Movie downloads on opening day

Imagine a screaming baby, talking teenagers, and $5 tubs of popcorn. Throw in a $9 ticket for a malformed movie plot and horrible acting, and you have yourself a fairly common movie-going experience. I have it on good authority that Hollywood is on track with the music industry, and ticket sales will be dropping like CD sales in the coming years. Okay, so the authority is me, but no one would argue that taking a trip to the movie theater is a gamble. I would rather pay $8 for a lottery ticket, with a better chance of ROI.

That would change, however, if I could watch the movie being released on opening day from the comfort of my couch. I would even pay the same price, with no save, stop, pause or fast-forward features. Bring it into my living room via a digital decoder, or onto my computer screen via open-source software, and I would be one happy soul. Who cares about THX sound, especially if the trade-off is me babysitting the patron’s children sitting next to me. Maybe Netflix will surprise us in the new year.

A personal, affordable, green energy source for the home

I recently had a discussion with a friend who is a project manager for the building industry. He was lamenting that a percentage of homes he is building on his next site must be green housing. I inquired about the additional costs involved, and he said twenty thousand plus per home. In an economic slump, I would rather keep that money, and pass the savings along to my children.

This is beside the simple fact that a green home may not include an accompanying green energy source. So while my home may be free of toxic chemicals, I still must pay an undesirable amount of money to consume a ridiculous amount of electricity for heating and cooling. There are alternatives, but that would cost another twenty to fifty thousand dollars. Not to mention neighbors who complain about the wind turbine in my backyard or the offensive solar panels on my roof. In 2008, it will still cost too much green to go green.

Instant OS boot-up

It is no surprise that the common computer user could care less about dual core processor technology. If less time had been spent researching these advancements, we might have something everyone wants instead — instant OS boot-up. I have to admit, I am a software guy, not a hardware guy, and I am fully unaware of the limitations. Yet, I do have the same questions as everyone else. Why must it take so long to free up system resources, load personal settings, and bring up the desktop? I want to turn on my computer like I turn on my TV.

This is the only item on this list that is unlikely to appear in 2008 because the technology is not yet available. I know, I know, do a search and you will read several articles touting this capability in desktop computers. The reality is that these solutions are simply “faster” boot-ups, or take advantage of some hibernate software you must purchase. What is Microsoft’s solution? Never turn off your computer.

An alternative to Windows

Let me clarify. This alternative to Windows should run native Windows applications without any hassle or performance sacrifice. I am aware of all the legal and technical restrictions involved, but if an alternative OS is going to shake up the industry in 2008, then this is a must-have feature. Small businesses hooked on Microsoft Office should be able to stick the CD in the drive, and install. The primary reason computer users will not switch to another OS is directly proportional to the number of software titles they have that will no longer work.

This could drastically shift as OpenOffice becomes more popular, and online office suites like Google Docs are adopted by the mainstream. I have used OpenOffice for a year on my laptop without a single compatibility issue. I am not a heavy Excel user, so I will not speak to the portability of those documents to OpenOffice. Other than older versions of Photoshop and Illustrator keeping me on a PC, I would be willing to try and switch. Now I just need to choose — Linux or Mac?

• Posted by Brian
• January 3rd, 2008