plugged In

by Eric Spellmann

Control it Via the Net!

Throughout my career, people have told me that “computers will be used for everything!”  After attending some of the high tech trade shows and conventions, I find myself believing them.  The Internet, however, has always seemed pretty straightforward.  After all, there’s only so much you can do online, right?

Well, get ready folks.  Some inventive individuals are coming up with a slew of imaginative ideas for cyberspace.

First, let’s start with the Coke machines.  Yes, you heard right: Coke Machines. Back in 1984, two students at Carnegie Mellon University, John Zsarnay and Lawrence Butcher, hooked a Coke machine up to the college network.  The computer would monitor the little “empty lights” on the machine.  At any time, the students could check the status of those lights from their computers by typing the “Coke” command.  Eventually, the college network connected to the Internet, and now anyone can check the status of the machine.  When people asked them why they did it, the two inventors simply shrugged their shoulders and said, “We got tired of making the long trip to the machine only to find it out of our favorite beverage.”

After the success of the Internet Coke machine started making the rounds, other students started connecting more devices, the most popular being coffee machines. (Funny how all of these inventions revolve around caffeine.) While trivial in their use, these initial experiments in connecting items to the Net led to bigger and better things.

Take for instance the Telegarden.  Started back in 1995 by the University of Southern California, this project allowed people on the Internet to plant, cultivate, and harvest small crops in a small garden plot via an industrial robot arm.  The circular garden allowed thousands of people to plant whatever they wanted and monitor the results of their care.  Recently, the whole garden was transferred to Austria where it is on display at the “Ars Electronica Center.”

One of the more “useful” sites you’ll find is the Micro Observatory at Harvard

(http://mo-www.harvard.edu/MicroObservatory/).  Students, by invitation only, can control the movements of five automated telescopes from their computers, viewing the results on any Internet-connected computer.  Classes halfway around the world have used the service to teach Astronomy.  Of course, taking your daytime class “halfway around the world” allows you to view live nighttime images from the telescopes.

For a more down to earth experience, check out Mori (http://memento.ieor.berkeley.edu/).  The scientists at Berkeley have hooked up a seismograph to the Internet.  The device monitors the micro-shakings of the Hayward Fault in California. These vibrations are then displayed in real-time on your screen in the form of a planet-based EKG.  I get the feeling from the writings on this site that its creators are trying to send a political message.

In the “most extreme” department, a guy in the Netherlands hooked hundreds of household devices to the Net.  While you couldn’t control them (imagine that nightmare), you could monitor the last time the microwave door was opened, or the exact moment “Sparky” the cat used the litter box. Nine different webcams monitored various events in the house, and a barcode scanner on the trashcan let you know EXACTLY what was being discarded.  It was taken down a while back for obvious reasons...

Finally, in case you haven’t had enough yet, check out David McAnulty’s Web-wired remote controlled car (http://www.hellspark.com/).  You can actually drive it around his house.  The screen is updated quickly so you can avoid bumping into walls.

What’s next?  Well, if you can imagine it, chances are, someone is already working on an interface to tie it into the world’s largest network.  Bet on it.

I’ll see you in Cyberspace!

Eric Spellmann is President & CEO of Spellmann & Associates. He can be contacted at eric@ericspellmann.com. Visit his website here.