Dana Blankenhorn writes: For every

Dana Blankenhorn writes:

For every decade in computing, the big story has been about a platform.

In the 1950s the story was the mainframe platform. In the 1960s the story was the minicomputer platform. In the 1970s the story was the PC platform. In the 1980s the story was the network platform. In the 1990s the story was the Internet platform. This is about as simple as you can make a history of computing. So why should the 2000s be any different?

In this decade, I assert, the story is the wireless broadband platform. This platform is, like every other platform we've discussed, built on what has come before. This means combining the PC and network (Internet) paradigms to create something brand-new.

The key point: "When your access point is built on a modular, scalable platform, when it has the capabilities of a PC built-in, then you can build new capabilities right on top of the network, applications that live in the network, rather than in a PC or server on the network."

This always-on world is the reason I believe thin clients will take-off. There will also be the need for a new information platform, and this will be centred around RSS and the Publish-Subscribe Web.