Connectedness

This WSJ article speaks about PDAs, which take the ubiquitous cell phone with its native ability to not just get phone calls, but also short-form ("SMS") text messages, to a higher level. PDAs primarily bring this simple enhancement: email.

Given that people-- and machines-- send each of us an endless array of messages daily, it's natural that we want read/write access at all times, not just when sitting in front of our laptop or PC.

In the article:

Wireless email devices used to be largely the domain of harried executives and professionals. Now, the so-called CrackBerry effect is beginning to afflict the masses. The BlackBerry has become ingrained in daily life, much like the cellphone and computer. The result is that a new demographic of obsessive users -- everyone from stay-at-home parents to college students -- is depending on BlackBerrys or similar email devices for basic daily tasks, such as checking sports scores, finding directions, emailing the children's baseball coach and keeping in up-to-the-minute touch with friends.

To this we add your home security system-- what if there were an easy-to-install "black box" you could put in your home-- or that of a loved one-- that would faithfully send you real-time email when there's trouble? And the data flies to you through the ether-- no phone line required. And you set the rules with a few mouseclicks via the web.

It's here. Place a wireless sensor on the gun cabinet, say. If it ever opens, wham-- email to that PDA on your hip. Conversely, set a rule looking for the absence of activity via the motion detector(s): If mom is not up and about by 10 am, wham-- an instant email goes to your PDA.

The right data, just-in-time, from your home (or your parents' home) to your PDA. It's now.