When you think of the technology of the future, do you see lots of quick, blinking lights or still holograms? Do you see gigantic chrome structures flying through space or just standard houses under domes? Do you see teleportation, or vehicals that travel just under light speed?

Most people have their opinion on what the future will look like, either from being a company that develops their own technology, or by watching a whole lot of episodes of the Jetsons. Who are we to tell the future? Well, we're humans! And you know what humans are always trying to do? To keep up with the times of course! The future matters to everyone! How quickly will technologies and acheivements be created? Will some ideas be even possible?

By looking at how our vision of a perfect tommorrow (or 'future perfect') has changed, we might just be able to predict the wonders of future technology.

Anyone who has watched enough episodes of any 60's Sci-Fi show ought to think the ideas look ridiculous now that technology is evolving differently. Watching Batman, the Outer Limits, or even the Twilight Zone, you can see several 'futuristic' ideas. These ideas, though very advanced, are solved in some very silly looking technology that does not seem very likely to be developed.

Face it, size counts. When you look at a 60's sci-fi spaceship, what do you see? Zillions of panels and buttons all fit in one room. A prime example would have to be the main deck on the Starship Enterprise on Star Trek. The whole room is practically nothing but buttons and seats. And I'm sorry to say, but that actually resembled the American spacecraft of the time... Where astronauts were crammed in a tiny seat where no matter where you looked, there were buttons!

What ever happenned to the giant big screen TV with so many control panels and buttons that it could make a man Dizzy to look at? Simple. We took mainframes, and we stuck them on your desk. The fact was, people realized we wouldn't get anywhere if we had to own two houses, one for a computer and one for everything else, because people realized that they would eventually need computers.

Little by little, technology changed. Microchips were invented causing everything to suddenly shrink. The amount of buttons were decreased as less buttons were made to do more, systems were made that could organize the actions of computers into simple programs. Computer moniters could organize the actions of a computer in a way that made everything entirely easier. In the end, the entire actions of the Starship Enterprise could have been fit onto a few simple PCs.

The Earl of Sandwhich was told to have invented the Sandwhich for one reason or another. Some say he invented it so he could gamble and eat. Others say he would want to eat while riding horses. Either way, he took what he wanted to eat and slapped it all together into one. This idea was replicated in technology several times.

What fools they were.

The idea of wrapping up everything in one is good, but, it does not save space and can cause problems with the technology. For instance, suppose that a Stereo was created that could play any song at all. Well, it might take a while to find the song you want to hear, and some songs you might not even listen to and not need. And besides, a stereo would have to be pretty large to store all of that data, and all the circutry involved could contribute to endless sorts of problems.

This issue is basically all about hardware and software. Hardware is the basic system that runs everything itself. Software is what you want the hardware to run. By creating software, all you need to do is choose what software you want at the moment, and install it to the hardware. You wouldn't have to own every song on earth, to listen to what you want to hear. And, by creating more powerful software, you can make hardware do more.

In the 60's, it was believed that computers and technology were best without software, and that they should do everything. Now, we believe that instead of having everything, you should just have what you want. So instead of ordering a sandwhich with everything on it, go to a deli and choose what fillings(software) you want on your sandwhich(hardware)!

Robo-Butler. The ultimate technological feat. A robot that can do your chores for you is what everyone has always wanted... And thinks is completely impossible.

Although people want a robo-butler, the idea of making chores easier with technology is still in top shape, but not with an android, but with a "Smart House."

That is, a house that has a computer system built into it that does everything for you. The idea of an android and a smart house have been around a long time. Both are in great development, however, it seems like a smart house is what we have already made the most research into.

We have to face it! Although research on androids is very powerful, people have already developed lots of gizmos that do the entire job themselves and don't resemble humans whatsoever! The idea of every element of your house having an electronic core is nearing... Who knows? Soon maybe they will all be networked together on your desktop, or better yet, on a remote control! Or even better yet, a pair of virtual reality glasses!

Color has definately changed. Long ago, when Disneyland was first opened, everyone loved to go to Tommorrow-land, the world of the future. Although Tommorrow-land was probably a favorite section, people noticed that it was very simple in color paterns. White, Black, and Red. Tommorrow-land was indeed very monotonous in its color. But as time went on, ideas changed, and little by little, Tommorrow-land was repainted over and over. Now, visitors are surprised by the fantasitic display of Golds, Blues, Reds, and Purples that cover the entire area.

The fact was, Tommorrow-land was made to resemble spacecraft. Face it, spaceships are basically black and white and red all over (like a newspaper). Lots of people do agree though, paint will soon be applied to spacecraft as it was to aircraft. Just as soon as spaceflight becomes commercial....

What does the future hold? It is likely that things will get smaller, there will be more software, lots of stuff will become automated, and there will be more color in the universe. Our ideas of the future are very different from that of the 60's, or the ideas of Jules Vern, or of times before then. Lot's of people have seen these ideas develop in ideas from our leisureful tools such as videogames, to our serious weapons such as spy-planes.

However, chances are that the future will throw a few curveballs at us. After all, our ideas of the future will change. Maybe we will have problems shrinking our technology to the quantum level. Maybe the only software we will need will be the internet. Maybe "Smart-Houses" will be deemed too expensive to make. And maybe color will just not matter. Either way, our vision of the future is doomed to change. This entry shows only a few examples of change. What about colinization or remote exploration issues? What about point-to-point or hub-to-hub travel? What about sitting or laying down?

I'm not the one to answer. After all, I'm just this guy sitting at his computer wearing pajamas thinking as hard as he can. Humans will do what they want... And hopefully do it right.