today mobile internet, tomorrow what michael harries citrix may 2009

Mobile Internet

Dr Michael Harries

Director Strategy and Communications

Citrix Labs and CTO Office, Citrix Systems

@michaelharries

today

What?

tomorrow

Futurist talk originally given at CeBIT

Australia WebForward conference

2009 with goal of provoking discussion.

... not your ordinary corporate deck ...

2© 2009 Citrix Systems, Inc. — All rights reserved

Some of us surround

our children with

music in order to ...


... create musically aware, capable

people.

With the mobile internet - we‘re

surrounding our kids with ever more

connectivity. We have no idea where it

leads ...


... excepting that

they will certainly

see us as dinosaurs!


synthesis

society

awareness

I see three long term

trends for the mobile

internet ...


1b!

... informed by current

trends best exemplified

by the iPhone.


mobile internet

fart apps

games

social networks

utilities

business apps

Today there are five

categories in the

mobile internet ...


mobile internet

fart apps

games

social networks

utilities

business apps

... ―Fart Apps‖ – 30 seconds

of amusement - gags that

work in social settings.


mobile internet

fart apps

games

social networks

utilities

business apps

... Games – much

like on the PC ...


mobile internet

fart apps

games

social networks

utilities

business apps

... Social networking

apps, much more

compelling on mobile

devices ...


mobile internet

fart apps

games

social networks

utilities

business apps

... Utilities – slices of

information made

easy ...


mobile internet

fart apps

games

social networks

utilities

business apps

... and business apps –

including email and calendar –

and now the Citrix Receiver for

ALL windows applications.

http://www.citrix.com/homeiphone

http://www.citrix.com/homeiphone


awarenesssociety

synthesis

The future for the

mobile internet holds

three major trends ...


synthesis

... Synthesis, the merging of

phone/ pda/ netbook/ laptop/

notebook/ desktop ...


http://nirvanaphone.com

... for example, the Citrix

Nirvana phone concept is very

near, remote Windows session

from a mobile phone with full

keyboard and screen.

http://nirvanaphone.com/


society

Society is about the future

technology and social/cultural

fulfilment of context sensitive

mobile devices with the social

networking gold rush.

(More on this in another talk.)


awareness

Both the Synergy and Society trends

are about how the devices evolve.

Awareness is about how the mobile

internet device will evolve us!


Like the mobile phone, the mobile

internet is with us 24 x 7. This is

new and can be considered as

‗ambient technology‘. Previous

attempts at ―ambient tech include ...


ambient

orb

... The Ambient Orb. This is an elegant

(wireless) device, that provides

‗information at a glance, rather than by

lookup. It can be configured to show

stock market trends, business KPI, etc.

http://www.ambientdevices.com/cat/orb/orborder.html




ambient

umbrella

The ‗ambient umbrella‘ is another

ambient device. It glows when rain

is forecast.

This device makes glancable

information contextual and ambient.


Devices have also been used

to address handicaps – in

some ways the ultimate

‗contextual‘ challenge


“seeing”with the back

Bach-y-Rita, 1969

A standout experiment from the 60s

showed that a 20 x 20 vibrating pad

against the subjects back could act as

substitute eyes. Subjects were able to

identify peoples expressions and to

build a 3d model of the room.


“seeing”

with the tongue

Today, this line of work continues,

but with far more efficient

technology. Now people can be

made to see through a 12x12 grid

of electrodes on the tongue.


Similar outcomes have

been reported with

rebuilding a sense of

balance.


There are also some fascinating

experiments that add NEW senses.

This belt vibrates on the North-most

side and was used to experiment

with adding a sense of absolute

direction.


All of these devices are examples of

a new science called Neuroplasticity.

For more information I recommend

―The Brain that Changes Itself‖.


How do neuroplasticity and ambient devices

relate to the mobile internet?

Let‘s look at what‘s new. What does the

‗ambient‘ mobile internet bring us?

We‘ve already talked about 24 x 7 presence in

our lives, or ambience.


―no‖ barriers

to entry

The other major change is that the

‗channel‘ for new mobile applications has

been revolutionised by the app store.

New apps on mobile devices are

incredibly simple to get to market – in

contrast to the purpose built devices

shown previously.


Let‘s look at a very pragmatic, down to

earth, ‗awareness‘ application.

Every year children are injured travelling

to and from school. To reduce this many

countries have introduced ‗School Zones‘.

However they are often missed by the

driver.


iTrafficAustralia

iTraffic Australia is an audio focused

application that provides subtle ‗nudges

to awareness when the user is

approaching school zones, or traffic

cameras, and you could imagine it also

providing warnings about traffic black-

spots or traffic delays.

Disclosure:

iTraffic Australia is a product of a January 2009

Sydney Startup Camp. http://www.startup-australia.org/startupcamp2

I was part of the team for this application, and

remain an advisor.

http://itrafficapp.com/

http://www.startup-australia.org/startupcamp2



http://itrafficapp.com/


―We shape our tools

and afterwards our

tools shape us‖

Taking this all back up a level.

Marshall McLuhan started the

field of media studies in the

60s. He coined the term

‗media‘. Among his many

quotable quotes is this gem.


―the mind is just

less and less

in the head‖

To become even more

metaphysical. Philosopher Andy

Clark talks about the way we use

our tools and incorporate them into

our very minds. His conclusion is

that what makes us human is that

we are naturally cyborgs.


Long term trends

Synthesis –

desktop/laptop/mobile device

Converged social networks

Dinosaurs did not in fact become

extinct, they evolved.

We‘re at an exciting time of change.

The mobile internet brings change

and literally new ways of thinking.


synthesis

society

awareness

There are three major trends affecting

the mobile internet.

This is a time of major change. Look

beyond the current app store gold rush.

The future is nearer than you think.


Citrix Labs is the future oriented part of

the Citrix Engineering organization.

No Derivative Works

today mobile internet, tomorrow what michael harries citrix may 2009

Technology