Likewise, Vint Cerf and the Internet pioneers of the 1970s hadn't a clue that what people would really love about the Net was e-mail. It's often the unforeseen outcomes of revolutions that make the biggest impact. It's too early to say. This special issue will give you a detailed rundown on them all, but here's a shortened tour. Very soon, talking to somebody will be the least exciting thing to do with a mobile, says Pekka Sivonen, founder of software developer Digia, based in Helsinki.
Mobile phones are about to become portable Internet terminals.
You'll use your mobile to film and view video, surf the Web and sell your house. Incidentally, don't be surprised that Finnish people have lots to say in this area. The country is home to the fabulously successful cellphone maker Nokia and has become a hotbed of revolutionary ideas. Conversations will be chopped up into digital packets and sent to their destinations by whatever routes are free. Packet switching, as it's called, will do away with dialling up and logging on.