Threads
Year 2000 compliance, Linux, the release of Windows 2000, new, lost-cost DSL offerings, and high-capacity wireless networks are just some of the technologies that promise to make 1999 a wild ride. What would you add--or subtract--from the list? Sound off in the LangaLetter threads.
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Bio
Fred Langa is a senior consulting editor and columnist for Windows Magazine. Fred's free weekly newsletter is available via subscribe@langa.com. You can contact him at fred@langa.com or via his website at http://www.langa.com.

Fasten Your Seat Belts

By Fred Langa

This week it's my pleasure and privilege to join the InformationWeek team. Some of you may be familiar with me from my other work at Windows magazine where I was editorial director for six years; or as a TechWeb columnist. Others of you may know me from my tenure as editor-in-chief of Byte magazine several years ago; or from various trade-show appearances; or from my own site at www.langa.com. In any case, I'm pleased to make your virtual acquaintance!

I'm especially glad to be joining InformationWeek as a weekly columnist now because the new year--just three weeks away--should prove to be one of the most interesting and challenging we've faced in a long time. It's going to be wild!

For example, the once-impregnable Wintel fortress has started to crumble. On the hardware side, AMD, Cyrix, and IDT have produced powerful, compatible, and affordable CPUs that have opened up the CPU chip market wider than it's been in almost 20 years. On the software side, Linux and a resurgent Apple--and maybe some longshot players such as Be--are likewise opening up the operating system market. Also, the AOL-Netscape deal is sure to have widespread repercussions, although no one can yet say exactly what they will be.

In systems, the anti-legacy drumbeat is growing louder, and next year we'll see the start of a flood of new machines that make no attempt to retain compatibility with the now-ancient AT-class standards of the 1980's. Built with all-PCI/AGP architectures and using only USB and FireWire for external connections, these systems should be simpler, cheaper, more stable, and far easier to configure and maintain than any previous PC has ever been.

In connectivity, a rash of new low-cost Digital Subscriber Line offerings plus new high-capacity wireless Internet access choices such as MMDS [Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service] and LMDS [Local Multipoint Distribution Service] will make it far easier for businesses to inexpensively stitch together distributed staffs and to keep road warriors highly productive and connected no matter where they are. In fact, with high data-rate options available everywhere, the IT definition of an enterprise has to change---it's no longer bound by geography, or a campus or a building; nor bound to any particular network topology.

Next year also promises new challenges such as a service pack for and a new equipment makers' version of Windows 98; the release (at last!) of Windows 2000 (the operating system formerly known as NT 5; the release of Office 2000; a new version of the Mac OS... on and on and on.

And that's to say nothing of the huge, overarching issues that affect everyone who has anything to do with using, maintaining, or managing PCs--things like the year 2000 problems we all face or the outcome of the Microsoft antitrust litigation. (One way or the other, the outcome of that trial will shape the computing landscape for years to come.)

It's going to be a pivotal year for the industry, and for all of us individually. It'll be great to explore and experience these issues (and many more!) with you.

In future weeks, I'll discuss an issue and offer an opinion in this space, and then the floor will be yours: The real value of a forum like this is your opportunity to voice your own opinion, and influence the opinions of others. Past TechWeb and Windows column, for example, have garnered responses from Microsoft, Apple, and other companies, and have brought about real change. One example: Microsoft changed a fundamental part of Windows 9x as a result of a Windows column. So participating here not only lets you share information with your colleagues, but also may be a means to help you resolve some of the issues you have to face on the job every day.

In a very real way, this is your column. As such, I'd love to hear from you about which topics you'd like to see covered in the coming weeks. What are the major issues you'd like discussed? What special challenges do you see looming for 1999? Join in!

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