Technology waiting list

This started out as a rather simple idea of a blog post, but something tells me that it’ll end up as a really long list…

I love technology – software, hardware, firmware, hacks, cool features, performance boosts – you name it. So with all the recent technological advances, I should be pretty happy, right? Well, I am. I love how things are evolving. However, we are not in heavens yet. There is plenty of stuff that is missing, and there are a whole bunch of improvements yet to happen to the existing technologies.

Here are just a few things that I am waiting for.

Operating system

Linux (and other open source software) is the way to go. I am a firm believer of that. I’ve been using Linux for a few years now and I really enjoy its improvements. Here are the things that I’m waiting for in this area.

• Better hardware support. Yes, I know that Linux supports more hardware than any other operating system ever did or does. But there are still things that don’t work at all, that are semi-supported, and that require a great deal of Sysadmin Black Magic â„¢. The question “Will this piece of hardware work?” is still in the air, though much less frequently than it used to.
• GUI polish. Modern Linux GUI applications look as good as ever. But there is still room for improvement. I want it slick and sexy. I want my eyes to rest and my creativity to flourish when I look at my desktop. I want people to uncontrollably whisper “Wow…” when they see my desktop. I want 3D graphics, fonts, liquid windows, animations, transparency… And I want it to work fast and need as little configuration as possible.

Applications

• Move to web services. I want everything to move towards the web. Work in the browser. Period. If application can’t work in the browser or makes no sense in the browser (like the browser itself), it should import data from the web, store configurations and settings on the web, and export and backup itself to the web. I want everything off my computer. I want to be able to access everything I need or want from any computer. And I want full interoperability and open formats for everything.
• Browser stability. Browser is the major application on my desktop. I don’t depend as much on any other piece of software. I spend 99.99% of my computer time in my browser. So it should be always available and it should never crash. I know we have session saving and restoration now. And that’s good. But it’s not enough. I simple want it to always be there. Every second. Every millisecond.
• Browser speed. I want it to work fast. I used to want it to be flexible. We got there. I have thousands upon thousands of plugins, extensions and themes for my browser. I have a few browsers to choose from. I am happy with features. But I want them to work fast. Every millisecond counts. Scrolling, switching, pre- and post-processing, theming, resizing – whatever I want to do it. And it should be as fast with all those extensions and plugins that I am installing on top of it.

Web

Web is the fastest growing area of information technology now. There is no question about it. We’ve achieved a lot, but there is plenty more.

• Speed. I want it all and I want it fast. ADSL is pretty affordable these days. But it’s still slow as hell. I want both uploads and downloads to be fast. And I want them both much faster than anything I’ve seen so far. “Speed of light” and “now” are the key words here. Also, I should be able to enjoy the same with any web-enabled device, be that a photo camera or mobile phone.
• Easier publishing. We’ve got to the point where my mother can use the Web. Now I want my grandmother to be able to do all those things and more. People should not be afraid of technology. Learning technology should be measured in seconds or minutes, not weeks (touch typing skill) or months (software development). I don’t care what we need to do. If we have to throw out everything and start from scratch – I see we do it. My grandmother has a lot to tell. It’ll be worth it.
• Coverage. This is not so much a web issue per se, but it is very related, so I thought I’d put it here. I want to be able to access the web from anywhere in the world. I want it to be so accessible that I don’t ever have to think about connectivity. It should be as available as air (no, I don’t mean air in industrial areas), because it’s getting as important.

Gadgets

• Drop those price tags. Five years ago I had a choice of mobile phones for 30 CYP. Today, in the same shop, the cheapest mobile phone I can buy is 40 CYP. And it’s the only model for that price. Everything else starts from 60 CYP. This is insane. From the perspective of the end-user, these phones do the same thing. They call and accept calls, store address book, and have ring tones. Sure, now we can have several calls in parallel, store thousands of people in the address book together with multiple numbers, emails, URLs, and even pictures of the person. And these days we can have ring tones in mp3 rather than in MIDI. But these all are the details. Function-wise – they are all the same. We could even use the web (sort of) before. That WAP thing, as ugly as it was. Now we get real browsers and stuff. But it’s still way too expensive. Cut in the price in half and I’ll be changing my mobile four times as often. Just for the sake of it.
• Improve web integration. I want to access the web faster. I want to have the functionality that I am used to on my other devices (laptop, desktop, PDA, etc). I want to synchronize my data (pictures, address book, calendar) with my web applications.
• GPS and radio. Continuous data streams are marvelous. They should be incorporated into any device out there. GPS and radio are the examples of these. GPS constantly updates the user on his current location. Radio provides a stream of news, thoughts, and entertainment non-stop. I want GPS and radio receivers in my mobile phone. I want them in my photo camera. I want them in my key ring.

Wires

Wires should simply disappear. We don’t need them. I want all my data to travel wireless. I want all my devices to produce energy out of thin air. I don’t want to see another piece of cable in my life. Ever again.

Transport

Travelling is way too slow, complex, and expensive. We are in 21st century already, and according to many futurists from the past, we should have teleporters by now. I know, projects get delayed often, but, c’mon guys, too many people are waiting for this. I want to travel from point A to point B in less than a minute. And I don’t want to spend more money on it than I do on a bottle of fresh orange juice. If it makes it any easier, teleporting can be limited to this planet for now…