Cloud computing taking the world by storm

Tired of paying thousands of dollars to use a piece of software like Photoshop? Don’t worry, because in the near future you will be able to use almost any piece of software for only a few cents. Welcome to the world of cloud computing.

Put simply, cloud computing involves using a web-based service to host all the programmes a user needs to complete a task. Remote machines that are owned by another company run everything from e-mail to complex supercomputing programmes. It is these computers, servers and data storage systems that create the ‘cloud’. All the user needs is an Internet connection and the ability to run the cloud computing system’s interface software, which is often as simple as a web browser.

Wireless energy - feel it, it is here!

It’s ironic that wireless gadgets don’t live up to their name. Even the best wireless gizmo will run out of juice and die without regular plugging in and charging up. Not anymore. Wireless electricity has arrived and you can now watch TV and recharge your camera and iPod without any cables at all. Tripping over a rat’s nest of wires behind your computer is a thing of the past.

Gaming in the cloud

Forget about the Xbox, Playstation and Wii. In the near future these silly gadgets will only be found in museums. No, gaming will not have died out - it will be healthier than ever - but the way games are played will have changed radically. Instead of buying (or pirating) a complete game and installing it on your computer, all you will need to do is connect to the Internet and play whatever game you like through ‘the cloud’. No more downloads, discs or patches.

The new meaning of mind control

In the 1982 movie Firefox, Clint Eastwood was able to control the weapons of his fighter jet by using thought alone. Sure, this was science fiction at its best but the amazing part is that the US military was providing research funding for this sort of thing ten years before. Today people are controlling everything from robots to computers using brainwaves.

Shout at your computer and it will listen

The days of the physical keyboard are numbered. This ancient device is being replaced by digital keyboards, rollup keyboards thin as a piece of paper and speech recognition technology. The future of typing is not better keyboards - it is no keyboards at all.

Hello surface computing, goodbye keyboards and monitors

Picture the cellphone of the future. It is merely the size of a coin and has no keyboard and no screen. But you won’t need a keyboard or screen because everything is projected onto the nearest surface (which could even be your hand). No more worrying about tiny screens or buttons you can only press with a pin.

Augmented reality – because the real world is average

Augmented reality is the hottest thing since sliced bread. (What came before sliced bread is anyone’s guess.) Simply put, augmented reality (AR) refers to software that superimposes computer-generated virtual imagery onto real-world images. Thus, reality is ‘augmented’ with digital information. You know the Head-Up Displays fighter pilots have? That’s augmented reality. Unfortunately we civilians have to make do with Apple iPhones, but that’s the next best thing.