The best schools, teachers and courses would be available to all students, without regard to geography, distance, resources or disability. Services that improve America’s health care system and respond to other important social needs could be available online, without waiting in line, and where you needed them.
For technology to become “pervasive” it has to be “more noticeable by its absence than its presence,” … like electricity or running water. When it does, the number of suppliers will shrink, and it will be harder for companies to differentiate themselves.
Europe is poised to benefit from the boom in information networks … Construction of an information society in Europe is not an option but a necessity.
Cyberspace will require, and in turn generate, billions of dollars in economic activity, creating, among other things, the largest unreal estate market the world has ever known. Indeed, the cultural and economic impact of a fully deployed cyberspace system is unmeasurable.
People are getting used to conducting business where they don’t meet face-to-face. But people have not yet started building businesses assuming that. They will.
The planet will not have to go to one lousy place [Microsoft] for desktop operating systems and productivity tools.
I strongly believe that we can solve two problems with technology. One is communication; more wars are caused by miscommunication than anything else, and technology can help there. The other is ignorance. With technology, we can address the problem with things like distance learning. And we can return to the idea of the master craftsmen teaching apprentices. We can leverage the skills and experience of the really clever and make them accessible to everyone.
Saul Carliner described his vision … an increased focus on content versus tools to unleash the power of information as a product.
Elizabeth Babcock … outlined her vision of the future … increased internationalization and continued growth in focusing on user needs.
Duin sees a blending of social and techinical areas of expertise in the future – merging studies of the technologies (interactive, multimedia and virtual reality) with the contexts of use (power, politics, relevance).