December 04, 2006
"Mobile" Computing
In one of those "darn, I wish I'd thought of that" moments, I stumbled across Bytemobile. But as it turns out the Bytemobile isn't a mobile vehicle at all, but a company that provides optimized Internet protocol (IP) services for mobile data networks.
From what I can tell, the closest Bytemobile comes to having anything to do with vehicles is with its "Toll Gate" software, which in turn doesn't seem to have anything to do with toll gates on bridges or turnpikes. Rather Bytemobile's Toll Gate applications provide a means for charging for content in wireless IP networks. Founded by two professors of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Bytemobile has four research and development centers -- at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois; Mountain View, California; Marlborough, Massachusetts; and Patras, Greece
Technology aside, I can't help but think that Bytemobile is missing a real marketing opportunity, what with its "Bytemobile" moniker. I can see it now -- a computer with wheels (a "portable computer"?). A steering wheel instead of a keyboard. A monitor instead of windshield. The computer equivalent of Oscar Meyer's "WienerMobile".
Of course, Dr. Dobb's isn't without its own official vehicle -- the DobbsMobile. Al Stevens is on the road piloting the DobbsMobile less now than he used to, but he still hits the road occasionally, with Dexter as his co-pilot.
To find out more about Al's DobbsMobile adventures, check out:
And other Al Stevens classics.
Posted by Jon Erickson at 11:06 AM Permalink
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