Hardwired

摘要

The wireless web was supposed to unchain workers from their desktops and let handheld gadgets turn streams of invisible bits into stock portfolios, music and shopping sprees. It's a lot harder than it looks. Handling data streams in a dozen divergent formats-from web pages to Java commands to wireless application protocol (WAP)-overwhelms the cheap, simple-minded chips in most cell phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs). Decrypting a 40-stock portfolio can take 18 seconds, an eternity in wireless time. The only thing swift here is the drain on the battery.