The next big thing.

Nothing to do with Eric, so cool it Nat.
I mean the next big thing in tech. What's it gonna be?
I grew up with very little in the way of technology. Our television had an indoor aerial, and you had to get up and push a button to change channels.
Then, little bits of tech started to appear in the house, starting with a pocket calculator. I can't tell you how many times I used it to make sure 2+2 made 4.
Then it was video, word processors, phones you could carry about, CD's, air pods, personal computers, flat screen tv's, e-readers, the list is endless.
But what's the next big thing?
I'm thinking quite small, but realistically. I think this could be the year when we see the first colour Kindle.
What would you like to see next, however fanciful?

Not something I’m looking forward to is the AI with chatgpt which IBM have halted taking office personnel on.

If successful it will create lots of job losses worldwide and cause rioting etc.

Very scary! 


IBM CEO says around 7,800 non-customer facing roles could be replaced


https://mol.im/a/12036965

The next big thing will be...

...doing away with something - but I don't know what!

Let me try and explain.

If you are old enough to remember, we had telephone boxes, wore watches, had cameras that we used to go to Boots to have the films developed, went into Town on Saturdays for the family food shopping, went to the chippy for our takeaway, met our mates down the pub, paid cash for everything, went to the high street branch of our bank when we needed to, etc, etc, etc.

Now we've moved on from all of those, we all have mobile phones, no need for watches or cameras, or films to be developed, Tesco (and everyone else) delivers to our doorstep, so to do the takeaways, we have social media, so pubs are no longer the centre of our social world, we use 'card' instead of 'cash' and do online banking so all the bank branches are no longer needed.

So the next big thing will be replacing something everybody does now, with something that is completely different but does the same thing too.

Maybe it might be say driverless vehicles, that replaces the need for taxi drivers (or bus drivers even).  Maybe we will have driverless trains and planes too?

The elections are taking place this Thursday, maybe the next big thing is voting online and not having to go to the polling stations in the future?

Whatever it is, I don't think it will be something brand new - something we don't do now - I think it is more likely to be something that replaces and delivers something we do now, but in a way we've never thought of before - and something that makes our life easier (and makes us that bit more lazier).

Maybe a machine that puts our slippers on for us, perhaps!

Sluffy wrote:The next big thing will be...

...doing away with something - but I don't know what!

Let me try and explain.

If you are old enough to remember, we had telephone boxes, wore watches, had cameras that we used to go to Boots to have the films developed, went into Town on Saturdays for the family food shopping, went to the chippy for our takeaway, met our mates down the pub, paid cash for everything, went to the high street branch of our bank when we needed to, etc, etc, etc.

Now we've moved on from all of those, we all have mobile phones, no need for watches or cameras, or films to be developed, Tesco (and everyone else) delivers to our doorstep, so to do the takeaways, we have social media, so pubs are no longer the centre of our social world, we use 'card' instead of 'cash' and do online banking so all the bank branches are no longer needed.

So the next big thing will be replacing something everybody does now, with something that is completely different but does the same thing too.

Maybe it might be say driverless vehicles, that replaces the need for taxi drivers (or bus drivers even).  Maybe we will have driverless trains and planes too?

The elections are taking place this Thursday, maybe the next big thing is voting online and not having to go to the polling stations in the future?

Whatever it is, I don't think it will be something brand new - something we don't do now - I think it is more likely to be something that replaces and delivers something we do now, but in a way we've never thought of before - and something that makes our life easier (and makes us that bit more lazier).

Maybe a machine that puts our slippers on for us, perhaps!

I believe the next big thing will be what many yearn for...  the fountain of youth... and with new ways of aging slower and more gracefully.

Sluffy wrote:The next big thing will be...

...doing away with something - but I don't know what!

Let me try and explain.

If you are old enough to remember, we had telephone boxes, wore watches, had cameras that we used to go to Boots to have the films developed, went into Town on Saturdays for the family food shopping, went to the chippy for our takeaway, met our mates down the pub, paid cash for everything, went to the high street branch of our bank when we needed to, etc, etc, etc.

Now we've moved on from all of those, we all have mobile phones, no need for watches or cameras, or films to be developed, Tesco (and everyone else) delivers to our doorstep, so to do the takeaways, we have social media, so pubs are no longer the centre of our social world, we use 'card' instead of 'cash' and do online banking so all the bank branches are no longer needed.

So the next big thing will be replacing something everybody does now, with something that is completely different but does the same thing too.

Maybe it might be say driverless vehicles, that replaces the need for taxi drivers (or bus drivers even).  Maybe we will have driverless trains and planes too?

The elections are taking place this Thursday, maybe the next big thing is voting online and not having to go to the polling stations in the future?

Whatever it is, I don't think it will be something brand new - something we don't do now - I think it is more likely to be something that replaces and delivers something we do now, but in a way we've never thought of before - and something that makes our life easier (and makes us that bit more lazier).

Maybe a machine that puts our slippers on for us, perhaps!

Interesting thoughts, Sluffy. I think voting online is a distinct possibility, but there needs to be some tweaking, so as not to disenfranchise the computer illiterate. Mind you, they are a fast disappearing group.
Having mentioned a colour Kindle, a computer screen that could use similar e-ink technology would be a huge boon for our struggling eyeballs.
Can't be that far away.
I'm also looking for tech that might possibly clone the dead.

Football forums are due a renaissance so get ready lads we will be busy again soon 

AI is a worry, i did see on the news that the chap who has been a leader in developing AI now says it's moving too fast and it needs to be scaled back before computers become more intelligent than humans.

wanderlust wrote:

Hi Lusty. Trust you to come up with a wine bag chair.

boltonbonce wrote:
Hi Lusty. Trust you to come up with a wine bag chair.

I do like a drink TBF...

I hope that's not real.

Sluffy wrote:Maybe a machine that puts our slippers on for us, perhaps!

When Bonce retired they replaced him with a stuffed chimp.

Productivity doubled overnight.

Natasha Whittam wrote:

When Bonce retired they replaced him with a stuffed chimp.

Productivity doubled overnight.

Outrageous. My lawyers are all over this.

Is this it? Mind you, I'm not sure I'm ready for augmented reality.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-65809408

I believe the next step will be implants in people, that connect directly via bluetooth or whatever supercedes it, to devices that may or may not be in the immediate vicinity, i.e. remote control or use of phones, cars, booking systems, and payments, etc. Along with this think of the development of a bionic computer or AI. In doing so we will move forward extremely quickly from that we now know as VR, to becoming more robotic in our own selves. Some would call it progress.

gloswhite wrote:I believe the next step will be implants in people, that connect directly via bluetooth or whatever supercedes it, to devices that may or may not be in the immediate vicinity, i.e. remote control or use of phones, cars, booking systems, and payments, etc. Along with this think of the development of a bionic computer or AI. In doing so we will move forward extremely quickly from that we now know as VR, to becoming more robotic in our own selves. Some would call it progress.

The medical implications are huge.

Hi Bonce. There could be so many benefits, but we will see people finding ways to electrically stimulate their own pleasure centres , and end up a useless heap, needing help from the community. At least it would get rid of drugs I suppose.

I read a SF novel where such a person was called a 'wirehead'. seemed about right 

Hi Glos, nice to see you again!

Happy Birthday to you in the next few days by the way (it is shown on the front page - I've not been stalking you!).

You should come back and join us again as all the civil wars have now ended.

The site is a lot quieter but a lot more friendlier and peaceful.

You've been missed.