Home Is Where the Network Is

摘要

You probably see your house as a place of shelter, hearth, family. Digital mavens see it as a hovel full of fourth-rate networks in grave need of high-tech integration. Look at it their way and it actually makes some sense. Most homes include several mini-networks, each its own little island. Despite an octopus of cables linking peripherals, the desktop computer rarely hooks up to anything else in the house. The entertainment center hides cables running every which way behind the TV, but none go to the computer. The climate-control system and its thermostat constitute an archipelago of their own, possibly including lights, appliances and the security system, all linked via the internal power lines. Then come handsets and answering machines connected via telephone wires.