Bob’s alarm clock rings at 8:30 Monday morning, just like every other weekday.
But Bob had a wild weekend, and reaches for the SNOOZE button.
And that’s when the action starts, and the Java-enabled appliances
come to life.
First, the alarm clock sends a message to the coffee maker* “Hey, the geek’s
sleeping in again, delay the coffee 12 minutes.”
The coffee maker sends a message to the Motorola™
toaster, “Hold the toast, Bob’s snoozing.”
The alarm clock then sends a message to Bob’s
Nokia Navigator™ cell phone, “Call Bob’s 9
o’clock and tell him we’re running a little late.”
Finally, the alarm clock sends a message to
Sam’s (Sam is the dog) wireless collar, with the too-familiar signal that
means, “Get the paper, but don’t expect a walk.”
A few minutes later, the alarm goes off again. And again Bob
hits SNOOZE and the appliances start chattering. Finally,
the alarm rings a third time. But just as Bob reaches for the
snooze button, the clock sends the “jump and bark” signal to Sam’s
collar. Shocked to full consciousness, Bob rises, grateful that his Java
skills and a little trip to Radio Shack™ have enhanced the daily
routines of his life.
His toast is toasted.
His coffee steams.
His paper awaits.
Just another wonderful morning in The Java-Enabled House.
You can have a Java-enabled home. Stick with a sensible solution using Java,
Ethernet, and Jini technology. Beware of imitations using other so-called “plug
and play” (which actually means “plug and play with it for the next three days
trying to get it to work”) or “portable” platforms. Bob’s sister Betty tried one of
those others, and the results were, well, not very appealing, or safe.
Bit of a shame about her dog, too...