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Incredible Shrinking PC
Lawrence_Bird writes "Reuters is reporting that IBM is set to announce next week a
prototype
PC called a 'metapad' 5"x3"x0.75". 128Mb Ram, 10GB, and an 800 Mhz cpu.
Understand this is a module that can be plugged into other devices,
such as a LCD screen or docking station. "
From www.m-w.com:
Main Entry: meta-
Variant(s): or met-
Function: prefix
Etymology: New Latin & Medieval Latin, from Latin or Greek; Latin, from Greek, among, with, after, from meta among, with, after; akin to Old English mid, mith with, Old High German mit
1 a : occurring later than or in succession to : after b : situated behind or beyond c : later or more highly organized or specialized form of
2 : change : transformation
3 [metaphysics] : more comprehensive : transcending -- used with the name of a discipline to designate a new but related discipline designed to deal critically with the original one
4 a : involving substitution at or characterized by two positions in the benzene ring that are separated by one carbon atom b : derived from by loss of water
Looks like 'meta', as a prefix, can mean a great deal of abstract things. Presumably, the idea of transcendence is what they're looking for here.
so apparently we all read arstechnica too. this was on there long before it showed up on slashdot. i don't blame the /. editors for
this, but i'd hope that the people posting
news would take a bit more ethical responsibility and report the source. see
the original arstechnica article for more details.
picture: http://i.i.com.com/cnwk.1d/i/ne/en/2002/02/0205met apad.jpg
article: http://news.com.com/2100-1001-830173.html