Rediff Guide to the Net peeks into the crystal ball and discovers five products, services and technologies that may influence the way you'll surf tomorrow.

1. Palladium

It's Microsoft's grand plan for the Internet and computing. Alternately, it's also viewed as Microsoft's scheme to monitor and document user activity and make people pay for the software they use.

Palladium is designed to make your PC the ultimate safe house for all your data. No more virus attacks and hacker threats. A smartcard-like attachment soldered to your PC's motherboard and a software component called the Trust Operating Root (affectionately called 'The Nub') convert your machine into a digital Fort Knox.

Trusted agent software running atop the nub and a secure processor would, in theory, control all use of data according to policies set by users, application makers or content providers.

So, what can Palladium do for me?

Email: Mail that you send would be read only by the recipient. Imagine self-destructing email: Palladium can ensure that email gets erased after a pre-set period of time. Besides, companies can ensure that official secrets stored on Palladium-enabled PCs are not leaked in the form of email. Even if information is leaked out, the recipient will be unable to open the document. Spam could be non-existent in the future too.

Piracy: Palladium PCs will detect and delete pirated software. Also, if people who use rented software stop paying rent, the Palladium PC will discontinue running the software.

File sharing: Palladium could be quite a thorn in the flesh of anybody who believes in free music on the Internet. Sample this: You download an mp3 from a subscription site. Now Palladium could ensure that once this file is traded online with a friend, you won't be able to play it anymore for the time that it remains with him. Tough, huh?

DVDs and music will be encrypted and will run only on Palladium platforms; no copying of data will be allowed. Palladium will be the recording industry's best friend and trusted ally in the fight against piracy.

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2. Wi-Fi (802.11b)

How would you like to check your mail on your laptop at the coffee shop and then walk across to the bench outside and continue surfing as you await your bus? This is already happening in places like Seattle.

802.11b is a standard that specifies wireless transmission of data from one to 11 Mbps. The Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Association (WECA) christened it Wireless Fidelity or 'Wi-Fi'.

These wireless networks shuffle data at six Mbps or more. Think of wireless service providers as micro-ISPs who offer Internet access for a subscription in a particular spot. However, since these networks cost only a few thousand rupees worth of hardware, software and an antenna, an enthusiastic set of people is all you need to build a private wireless network.

Users require laptops with Wi-Fi capability PC cards that cost about Rs 4000. Some high-end laptops come with these now. Also required is software that indicates when you are in range of a Wi-Fi signal. The Miami Herald reported that an In-Stat/MDR study had found that by 2005, worldwide sales of Wi-Fi equipment would surpass the $5 billion mark.

Wi-Fi telephony: VoIP meets Wi-Fi and you get Wi-Fi telephony! VoIP is about sending voice over the Internet using the Internet Protocol (IP). Now, in a Wi-Fi network, you can send voice over the Internet and still be mobile.

This can drastically cut telephone usage costs in enterprises that have a lot of mobile workers. As these workers move from one 'hot spot' (as a Wi-Fi networked area is called) to another, they can continue to stay connected with Wi-Fi telephony.

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3. Speech Recognition Software

Hate typing? You'll be able to get your work done by speaking to your handheld device or PC. Speech-enabled devices like the telephone, Internet and/or computer network would even be compatible with other machines, such as cars! So in future, you could drive to work and check your email/ bank account or order your favourite CD en route -- just by speaking into your phone or laptop.

Recognising this potential, Intel, Microsoft, Cisco, Comverse, Philips and SpeechWorks have come together to develop software that will let users call up any Web site without clicking a button. Calling themselves the SALT (Speech Application Language Tags) Forum, these companies seek to incorporate graphics and video with voice recognition software. They plan to use HTML to voice-enable the Web.

Market research firm, the Kelsey Group, has projected worldwide spending on voice recognition to reach $41 billion by 2005.

4. Universal instant messaging

Instant messaging (IM) will change dramatically if all the IM service providers adopt SIMPLE (Session Initiation Protocol for Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions), the forthcoming IM standard that will establish a uniform means for short text-messages sent over the Net.

The problem with messaging services is that most of them run on proprietary technologies. This means that you can send and receive messages only if your friend uses the same messenger. But if SIMPLE is implemented, users won't need multiple IM accounts to communicate with all their friends online.

While most industry leaders like Microsoft and AOL have agreed to work on SIMPLE, it will take some more time before the unified standard can be established.

If you can't wait to use a single, universal IM interface, try services like Trillian and Imici that let you access different accounts from one interface. They combine the software code for diverse IM services into one common software. However, while this lets you chat using a single IM interface, you still need to sign up for the various IM services that your friends use.

5. Simputer

The Simputer is a handheld PC launched by the Simputer Trust, consisting of software engineers and professors from the Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Science. This low-cost device (when mass-produced, it will cost about Rs 10,000) was designed to bridge the 'digital-divide' in India and give the masses access to affordable computing devices.

The Simputer, which has an Intel StrongARM processor and comes with a 24MB/ 96MB RAM, has applications such as email, voicemail, text- to-speech and Internet access.

A smartcard facility that can store user information enables the Simputer to be shared by a group of users. The user can carry around the smartcard and when inserted into the Simputer interface, data on the card can be updated and modified. It also enables users to make financial transactions online.

I want my Internet to be….

A Typical User Wishlist

• Access to any kind of music after paying a monthly/yearly membership fee
• Increased bandwidth
• No more spamming
• Smarter search engines
• Source of income - I should be able to sit online for four hours a day and make money
• Safes online - unlike the X-drives and I-drives of yesteryears. More like an online locker, absolutely secure and tamper proof, to save documents, mp3s, etc
• Get the Government to move more work online. Might actually bring down corruption! (hey, this is a wishlist!)
• Safer surfing experience for children
• User friendly - My granny should be able to use it
• My PC's look should evolve to accommodate all the changes in online entertainment