DubMeNow wants you to get rid of your business cards - if you have a cell phone. Once you exchange contacts on DubMeNow, the contact information for both of you is always kept updated.
(Update 05-Apr-2024: DubMeNow for Apple iPhone demo video)
The company now supports every cell phone sold in the U.S. and has special feature-rich software for phones like iPhone and Blackberry. It can keep track of where you last met that contact on Google Maps and the company is working on options to present information from linkedln and Facebook.
This service reminds me of the hypercard business card from Neal Stephenson's 1992 novel Snow Crash.
The hypercard is an avatar of sorts. It is used in the Metaverse to represent a chunk of data. It might be text, audio, video, a still image, or any other information that can be represented digitally.
I'm guessing that it's just a matter of time before these links are used to download reams of information into your contact list on your cell phone. Most smart phones offer additional fields for the inclusion of unstructured information.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!)
is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for
the Invention Category that interests
you, the Glossary, the Invention
Timeline, or see what's New.
Prairie Madness - And Space Sickness
'Space-sickness is one of the most unpleasant sensations that a human being can experience. Not all are subject to it...'
'Old People Began to Cross The Continent In Their Own Cars'
'It was a relief to enter one of the comfortable autos, whisper a direction down the tube, and just know that you would be taken to your destination in the quickest, safest, and cheapest manner.'
Starfall Manufacturing Drugs In Space
'The vast spinning sphere of Factory in the Sky loomed above and ahead of us, gleaming white against the unfathomable jet depths of surrounding space.'
The Solar Oberth Slingshot
'And if it doesn’t work,' inquired Lazarus, 'what does that make us? Sunspots?'
'If Anyone Is Watching Earth...'
'Our study of your race has convinced us that you are not fitted to leave your planet in the present state of your civilization.'