Seems that the future has arrived at last. At the Demo conference for new tech, the companies are being asked to have some substance to their flashy demos, and expensive looking gadgets. Just think of it, stuff that looks cool AND is useful. Going to make the trip to Circuit City a lot more enjoyable, and maybe bring it more into line with going food shopping.

Well, ok maybe not as important as food shopping, but at least it will be more exciting than going to the local Home Depot to buy something.

Getting something to fix the house up with is a satisfying experience, from finding it on the shelf, right through to when you close the door behind the contractor you finally had to pay to do it properly. But if gadgets (and I mean the take batteries/recharge/plug into the TV, types) become USEFUL as well as nice to play with, an entire spiritual generation of guilt will magically dissolve.

No more waiting until some bit of boring household thing has decided to crumble into dust before you can legitimately park up next to a big electronics store and go in guilt free. Oh no, pure unadulterated USEFULNESS. No more stealing a few precious moments in the massive TV section, dreaming of what it's like to own one of these huge beasts, because now, you NEED to go there.

It's only luck that remote controls are designed to break very easily (or be suffering a spell in the other 'lost' dimension) so you can go and take a look in those places at all! I mean, if remotes lasted any length of time at all, those stores would be finished. THAT is why those all in one remote thingies for $210 a time, are so popular. It's similar technology to alien implants. You sell one to someone, and then they know that some time soon, they MUST return. Perhaps I am letting the secret out here, but if it wasn't for cheap shoddy plastic electronic components, then no man would ever make it back to the electronics stores. At least he might make it in, but of course would never be seen alive again, as the guilt would engulf him in a firery death. Cleverly disguised as an argument with his wife about wasting cash.

So this is why it is VERY important that gadgets become more useful..... did you follow me this far?