Predictions: 2010

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Every year lame ass writers get paid nicely for prognosticatin’ what the hell is gonna’ happen in near future or at least next year in tech, culture, politics, blah, blah, blah, yada, yada, yada, woof, woof, woof. I get paid diddly squat, but why should I be any different? Here’s my take on what’s in store for 2010

i.) Apple sticks with AT&T until the end of its five year contract.  But pressures the telco to improve its network.

ii.) The Google Phone is released and is a slow starter out the gate. Most journos praise it, users mainly happy with it, proves to a popular second phone for iPhone users of all people.

iii.) The Apple tablet is delayed until August – it is a souped up large iTouch, but this is the hit of Christmas season – people buy it not so much as a netbook with a touch screen, nor as a news and information aggregator, but as a game machine, it outsells The Wii, the Xbox and Playstation.

iv.) The inner rot at IBM begins to see the light of day and shakes up Wall Street terribly. Microsoft and Oracle begin circling.

v.) The Chrome OS netbook is a qualified success and has very respectful sales figures. Ubuntu Linux netbook sales will have increased to the point nearly half of all netbooks sold.

vi.) the exodus from Windows XP to Windows 7 significantly increases, mainly users buying a new box with 7 installed.Unfortunately for Microsoft and its hardware partners, a lot of XP users migrate to Apple. Linux continues to have small gains, Ubuntu, Red Hat and Novell getting larger shares than other Linuxes, naturally.

vii.) The issue of software patents and patent trolls gets muddled through even further  in courts. The USPTO begins long process of re-evaluating most software patents from 1993 onwards.

viii) Dead tree newspapers and magazines subscriptions decline dramatically, as does ad revenues. Alliances are struck with Apple, Amazon, Google, Bing, Sony and others to help distribute content.

ix.) The first step towards a “virtual” web (think like The Matrix) becomes realized, as we head towards Kurzweill’s Singularity.

x.) The current “upswing” takes a drastic downturn, people in many western nations affected, including U.S., Canada and Mexico. The Web helps the disaffected get organized and take to the streets but also begins the largest influx of individual entrepreneurs in world economic history, the Long Tail economy enters its next phase.

xi.) Local and state governments continue to pursue measures to keep its populance “healthy”, i.e. continued enforcement of no smoking bans, controlling sale of unhealthy (but tasty) food additives, introduction of exercise and yoga programs in schools and some businesses.

xii.) Backlash against dropping of public option causes a major rift in both Republican and Democratic Parties – candidates that are considered to have “sold out” to insurance companies are replaced by freshman, grass roots, wet behind the ears congresspeople that disrupt the way business is done in Washington.

xiii.) Factions within major parties split away and form major national and state parties. By 2012, there are four parties, two moderates, one extreme left and one extreme right. A social and religious party also arises but remains a fringe player.

xiv.) Al Franken announces he’s throwing his hat in the ring for 2012 Democratic vice-president nominations.

xv.) Glenn Beck will still be crying, except it’ll be because he’ll lose his job for conflict of interests.

xvi.) Some MIT-tards actually land a rock collecting robot rover on the moon and bring it back to Earth in one piece – for less than $13,750!

xvii.) The White House gets a green revolution makeover.

xviii.) Moore’s Law gets applied to solar cells, as greentards work towards making them cheaper and more energy efficient

xix.) Homegrown terrorists in U.S. successfully suicide-attack a major port.

xx.) Air travel continues to suck.


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