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You’re at the airport, and you want to plug in your laptop, but the only two outlets in a concourse large enough to actually land the plane in are already occupied by two people who don’t look like they are going anywhere. I have a sure-fire way to get yourself hooked up to some 120V AC all the same.

To know where we’re headed in 2008, we must understand how Americans adapt to the latest information and communications technology. According to May 2007 research from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, roughly half of Americans actively use online communications devices.

The breakout:
- 8 percent are deep users of the participatory Web and mobile applications.
- 23 percent are heavy, pragmatic tech adopters who use gadgets to either keep up with social networks or be productive at work.
- 10 percent rely on mobile devices for voice, text, or entertainment communications.
- 10 percent use information gadgets but find them a hassle.
- 49 percent use devices only occasionally, and many of these users resent all electronic connectivity.

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Virtualization allows one physical computer to house multiple "virtual machines," each one acting like a separate computer with an operating system and all the software that runs on top of it.

For office workers, virtualization might mean that "their computer" is actually a virtual machine running on a server - not the actual hardware on their desks - and can be accessed from any work station. That, in turn, could make it easier for IT workers to install new applications across an entire company network or back up an individual's computer with all its settings, and would make losing a laptop much less disastrous. What's more, older hardware that would have been replaced can have a longer life connecting to virtual desktops housed on more powerful servers.