Smart House

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un expects home networking to be big business. Chairman Scott McNealy points out that there are about 70 million personal computers, but some 9 billion microprocessors embedded in consumer electronic devices and home appliances. In the near future, for an extra $5 or $10, manufacturers could put a Jini-enabled chip inside appliances that would allow them to talk to other devices and connect to the Internet. Sun's dream is to put Jini on just about everything.

The first Jini-enabled printers, disk drives and other computer devices will appear at the end of this year, followed by consumer electronic devices and finally home appliances like washing machines and toasters in 2001, says Mark Tolliver, Sun Microsystems' president of consumer and embedded software. Once that happens, all the devices in the home will be able to network.

But the first home networking breakthroughs are happening with PCs. As people buy more than one PC there is a financial incentive to share a single printer, modem and Internet connection. Networking solutions include using existing phone wires, electrical lines or wireless technology (see box). For example, Ambi, a new product from Philips Electronics, incorporates ShareWave technology which permits a high-speed wireless connection between the PC and the TV. That way one person can play a PC game on the TV in the family room while a second person uses a spreadsheet on the PC screen in a home office. Both applications reside on a single PC in the home office, with digital wireless technology establishing the connection between PC and TV.

Advances in wireless technology will also allow for the automatic transfer of information between Internet appliances and computers. A consortium of mobile phone, chip and computer makers is working on a technology codenamed BlueTooth which will allow the wireless transmission of voice and data in home networks. Motorola of the U.S. is working on software--codenamed PIANO for personal interactive appliance network--that enables two devices to network automatically when they're close. In about a year's time, when the first products using BlueTooth, PIANO and Jini technology are ready, a laptop user will be able to transfer files via a mobile phone even though the phone is inside a briefcase and there are no wires connecting the two devices--one device will automatically signal the other that it needs to connect.

Road warriors will be the first to reap the advantages. Someone with a palmtop or organizer could be automatically checked in to their hotel or on to their flight without having to stand in line. The mobile terminal would automatically signal the reservations system.

On the home front, there will be a need for gateway devices that link appliances to the Internet but also act as a firewall to prevent hacking. Why use an additional layer when the Internet could reach your toaster directly? The answer is control, security and cost. Hanging all devices--equipped with the necessary computing power and security solutions--on the Internet is far more costly than centralizing some of the computing power and most of the security on a hub device.

Sweden's Ericsson is testing such a device, called the EBOX, to control home energy consumption. Other possible services are home remote monitoring of elderly or sick people who live alone, and remote control of home security systems. According to technology consultancy Forrester Research, consumers may also find that service providers such as phone companies can construct secure neighborhood intranets to screen e-mail, offer virus protection and provide remote file backup--imagine losing your family's photo album if your system crashes.

While high tech consultants agree that demand for home networking will increase significantly over the next few years, no one is really sure what the killer application will be. Forrester's Therese Torris warns that it is difficult to make money on services like remote maintenance of appliances. After all, if you fix something before the client realizes it's broken, they don't appreciate what you do. And, warns Forrester, too many reminders from smart devices to take out the trash or pick up milk could create a backlash. But having the electronic equivalent of a full-time personal assistant may be enough to convince most overstressed people to put up with a little cyber-nagging.