Isn’t technology marvellous? “Shared technology is the
coming together of various technologies that were stand alone into new
applications.” Thus begins a report of the Department of Education Science and
Training released
this week.

If you can make head or tail of this jargon, you might want to
go to page six of the report and follow the adventures of a fellow called “John
Ellis,” the new model techno-worker, whose life has been enriched by the wonders
of modern gadgetry.

John’s day starts at home with a message on his screen from the
office: “an important client has received an urgent order and needs a planned
revision to her manufacturing configuration. Can she have a technician install
the new sensors later today?” etc, etc.

The rest of us will have to wait nervously for someone to
translate the future intelligibly. Technology can only do so
much.