Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Digital Lifestyle

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the but-whats-wrong-with-the-analog-kind dept.

Gingerman writes "The BBC is running a story about a full automated lifestyle centre in Wokingham UK. The centre has everything from the home to the office and includes shops too." It's a little thin on details, but its a mix of practical things that could be around the corner, and stuff that may be a little further down a 6 lane interstate.

5 of 141 comments (clear)

  1. Between this and the Segway scooter... by buckeyeguy · · Score: 0, Offtopic
    I guess I'll have to pack some more fat padding onto my ass, as it appears that I'll be spending even more of my life sitting down, if this vision of the future comes true.

    re: the other poster who mentioned the Disney-like tones of this futuristic vision, I last saw Disney's Epcot center in 1996, and boy was it dated then... I certainly hope they've reconsidered some of the stuff in their 'world of the future' displays.

    --
    I'd have a personalized plate on my car, but "toxic bachelor" won't fit into 7 letters.
  2. Re:Ridiculous by strags · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    I suspect I'm just feeding a troll here, but...

    The only reason British DSL costs so much, and is so late to be deployed is because of an antiquated, complacent, mismanaged, monopolistic telephone company - British Telecom. They held back DSL deployment because they didn't want ISDN sales to suffer, and even now, are doing everything possible to hinder providers' access to the local loop.

    The chairman of BT once claimed that the public just weren't ready for DSL yet.

  3. Re:Ridiculous by ColdGrits · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    That's funny, because I have a full 512k 24/7 cable connection to the internet (multiple computers on it) all for under US$30 per month - less than half your overinflated price questimate.

    Ah well, as I live in Wokingham, I know exactly where that HP centre is - must try for a visit soon :)

    --
    People should not be afraid of their governments - Governments should be afraid of their people.
  4. Re:Ridiculous by pubjames · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    The UK has such a high cost of living (in part due to the socialistic policies of Tony Blair)

    Come on, the UK has had a high cost of living for years. There are lots of other even more "socialisitic" countries in Europe which don't have the rip-off prices that Britain has.

    Tony Blair is keen on entering the Euro, something that would likely reduce prices in the UK closer to the European average (so you wouldn't have to travel abroad to avoid being ripped-off when buying a car, for instance). However, you Brits of course are choosing to stay out of that, so you have partly got yourselves to blame for "rip-off Britain".

  5. Re:Ridiculous by EnglishTim · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    "the socialistic policies of Tony Blair"

    Riiiight... I don't think that 'Socialist' and 'Labour party' really belong in the same sentence any more. It used to be simple:

    Labour: Left-wing
    Liberal Democrat/ SDLP/ whatever : Centre
    Conservatives: Right-wing

    Now you've got:

    Liberal Democrats: Centre-Left
    Labour: Centre-right
    Conservatives: Slightly more right than Labour.

    Mind you, the centre has moved to the right a bit, anyway.