Microsoft has unveiled one of the biggest features planned for Windows XP's 2nd Service pack.
According to sources, SP2 will let one person use a computer normally using a keyboard/mouse while a second person will be able to use the same PC's resources to surf the net, look at pics, etc. using a smart display, sounds like an evolutional step that makes a lot of sense to me.

A smart display, which Microsoft developed under the code name Mira, is typically a 10-inch or 15-inch detachable monitor running Microsoft's Windows CE for Smart Displays operating system. They do not contain hard drives and do not connect directly to the Internet. Instead, they funnel requests to, and receive data from, a base station PC running Windows XP. Once detached, the smart display connects back to the PC using 802.11 wireless networking for accessing e-mail, surfing the Web or reading documents. A stylus, rather than a keyboard, is used to input data.

Sorta like having 2 PCs in one eh? That'll be huge in schools. Just a few nice big topend PCs, instead of 500 crappy ones.

Gates is obsessed with turning the home PC into a multimedia server, capable of doing everything from answering your phone calls to remembering to tape your favourate TV shows to providing a broadband internet connection to all of your handheld devices.

Believe it or not, I've been advocating this kind of thing for about 10 years now. Its not exactly revolutionary, however its a logical progression from what's going on right now, and what has been going on for some time.

I imagine that some kind of bluetooth system is comming where you will be able to carry a portable TV, video, laptop, anything the hell you like around the house and internet delivered media, even internet TV, will be streamed there, all managed by a central PC. And that PC will be running some kind of future version of Windows. At least, that's what Gates wants.

My hat is off to the guy - this kind of thing, in terms of the evolution of technology - is almost a scientific certainty, and if Gates can be the man to realise it, all power to him.

However, the question remains whether Gates will engineer this in such a way that his MS monopoly is carried into this area as well. Imagine Microsoft moving away from the backoffice server and into the living room. Imagine that to even watch the TV, you needed a Microsoft product. That day may be comming.