Summary

The charm of the Inescapable Data world is that multiple data sources can now be easily hooked together for new values. We are entering an age that will be filled with devices emitting data, most notably RFID tags on our consumer products, but also streaming video sources and other devices. Wireless Ethernet and other wireless technologies are already being adopted at astonishing rates, and we (collectively) expect our data devices to be wirelessly enabled now. XML and related technologies are paving the way for data-emitting devices to be easily understood by us, while enabling us to rapidly knit their data into higher-value settings. Quite possibly, we soon will see our appliances come more Internet-accessible and perhaps even have an understanding of exactly what items are in them. Wireless video will offer us improved personal and home security, and GPS will provide that desired detail of knowing "where" we are (or anyone else, for that matter). In the meantime, we are seeing the beginnings of appliances reaching outside of their enclosures, the steady deployment of wireless everything, and the early stages of new data-emitting products.