Copyrighted by publication in 1998. All rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted by the author to the readers for storing an electronic copy of the work intended for standard fair usage. The online version of this work is under a state of revision.

Disclaimer: The following are all my own opinions. I do not personally endorse or recommend the use of the following information, and take no responsibility for the results of using the following information. All of the following predictions are based on clear, unstoppable trends, educated guesses, and a dash of immagination.

Overview
Computers will be ubiquitous, powerful, and networked.

The Future of Hardware
Computers will become smaller, cheaper, and more powerful. Many commonly used devices will include computers. Some of these will be connected to the Internet.

Powerful computers will be small enough to wear on the body as jewelry, such as a watch or a pendant. These computes will be used as personal assistants, handling appointment scheduling, taking notes and dictation, researching through the Internet, etc. These will truly be personal computers. They will monitor the health of their users. They will maintain a diary of their users lives. They will serve as communicators, baby sitters, monitors of criminals, and advisors. These personal computers may even become friends and confidants.

Input
Voice input will be more common, but will never replace textual input, such as that from a keyboard. Voice input simply has different uses than textual input. For a non computer related example, audio tapes and books have different uses and audiences.

Output
Voice output will become more common with the introduction of ear pieces which will be similar to hearing aids, virtually invisible, private, and highly useful.

One of the most powerful revolutions in computing will be the contact lens computer. This computer will allow inputting into the computer whatever the user is looking at. They will be solar powered, but will probably benefit by recharging. It will allow the user to see text, graphics, and motion video superimposed over normal vision. In concert with the ear pieces, light gloves, and, perhaps, a few unnoticable chips implanted into clothing, powerful virtual reality will be possible.

The Future of the Internet

All telecommunications will merge into the Internet. This in incontrovertable. The result of this merging may not be called the Internet, and it may not function as the Interent does. What it will mean is that almost every computer will be connected to other computers.
Open standards for communication will mean

The Future of Software

Some people believe that software will all be run from central software servers, not on local computers. This is mostly myth. The Internet will allow specialized devices to run over the Internet, but the flexibility and power of running localized software will severely limit centralized software serving. The primary use of the Internet regarding software will be automatic upgrades, automatic bug reports, software feature usage monitoring, and software customization.

Biotechnology and Computers

Computers which are inserted into the body (biocomputers) will become more and more common, but will never become primary computing resources. The true use of biocomputers is medical. Medical monitoring, healing, disease prevention, and prosthetics will revolutionize health.