Part 49 (1/2)

”Fax transmission complete,” the Joey said.

”Pip,” William said, ”thank you.”

”You're welcome, William,” the Joey said.

William laughed and shook his head. ”Incredible,” he said. He switched off the microphone and laid it down on the table. ”Well, I guess that proves your point. You're right. For simple busy-work like sending a fax or creating an e-mail, being able to speak to the computer directly does make the job easier.”

”Right,” Peter said. ”And some people will use it for longer doc.u.ments, like a traditional dictation system, but without the need to transcribe it. And in order to avoid being interrupted in the middle of your brainstorm it will wait until you are done to ask you to clarify any words it did not understand.”

”What about the handwriting stuff,” William said.

”That's another enhancement,” Peter said, ready to explain how it fit in with the rest of the product. But just then, Grace came into the room.

”Come on, boys, lunch is ready.”

The men stood and stretched, and Peter went on as they headed out of the room. ”Like the speech interface, we think the handwriting recognition, which we've vastly improved over the standard Joey version, will be used for smaller tasks, jotting down notes and contact information, that sort of thing. But not necessarily for writing long letters. For that, they can use the keyboard.

However, for editing an existing doc.u.ment, using the stylus like a red pen to mark up the page and scribble in corrections or move text around, we've put in standard editor pen-strokes to make revisions a snap.”

William removed his gla.s.ses. ”It's amazing. The way these enhancements - the agent technology, and the speech and improved handwriting recognition - have upped the ante, making an already pretty smart portable system truly intelligent.”

”Right,” Peter said. ”And the vertical application possibilities are endless. Publis.h.i.+ng, using the editorial mark-up features I described. And any business that relies on forms. We're already collaborating with a doctor friend of mine at Stanford,” Peter said enthusiastically. ”She's building a system that lets doctors and nurses track patients' vital signs and prescription orders on a prototype system we've hacked together for her.”

The group seated themselves around the dining table, with Peter and William sitting side by side.

William said, ”But what about the computer itself? I see you've cracked open a few Joeys in there and put in your own custom hardware. Is that how you intend to deliver the product? As a Joey peripheral?”

Peter let out a big sigh on this one. ”That's a good question.

One I tend to get a little too worked up over. See, I want to do our own thing. It would take longer, but it would be ours, and not a part of Wallaby's. Let's just say I'm still a little sensitive on the subject. Byron, why don't you handle that one.”

Grace handed Isle to Peter and he gently rocked her in his arms.

”She's precious,” William said. ”I didn't know you were a father.”

”Yep,” Peter said. ”Her name is Isle. She's the little jewel behind everything you just saw.” He kissed her fuzzy head.

Byron took a sip of his water and addressed William's question.

”That's not a bad idea, Billy. Petey and I have been talking about it between us, and we're not exactly sure how we're going to deliver the final product. We could do it as a Joey add-on. Or we could create our own new computer. That Joey in there that you were playing with is only the basic guts. For more reliable net and web access, we've slipped in a faster, 28.8 KB modem with a wireless option so you can send and receive e-mails or do paging through the airwaves, without plugging into a phone line. And we've come up with a sharper, lower-power thin-film transistor display, a longer-life battery pack, and an infrared port too, that lets you beam information to your desktop system or to other Joeys and IR devices, like printers, or h.e.l.l, to your TV even, when we get the home-entertainment interface software we're kicking around up and running.”

William put down his fork and took a sip of his water. ”Well, there is another option that you have not mentioned.” He paused.

”You could integrate the ISLE design into a next-generation ICP product.”

Everyone around the table stopped and looked at him. Then they looked at Peter.

Peter, gently rocking Isle in his lap, looked at Byron. Then he turned to William, and he smiled.

”Now there's an interesting idea.”

She pulled into a handicapped parking s.p.a.ce beside Matthew's car, then flashed her Wallaby VIP badge to the security guard sitting behind the lobby desk. Matthew had gotten the pa.s.s for her a few years ago, after she had once been accosted by security when she had arrived and marched right past the desk carrying a basket of flowers, a surprise for her husband. As far as she was concerned, she was still the boss's wife, and she could go anywhere she d.a.m.n well pleased. She ignored the guard's pleasantries and boarded the elevator. A moment later the door parted, and she was on the top floor.