OrionWorks - Steven V Johnson <[email protected]> wrote: In the interim, prior to 25 - 30 years, it seems to me that there is a > good chance we might see distributed AC spread across the landscape as > small substations spring up at local "filling" stations - which use to . . >
> I'm thinking of something similar to the internet where small > distributed sub-generation stations constantly replenish the > electrical grid. I would not compare that to the Internet so much as to the 1960s and 1970s timeshare business, where computer power was rented out to people who used dumb terminals. That business collapsed swiftly after the introduction of minicomputers. Generally speaking, industries which are on the skids -- headed for near term extinction, that is -- do not innovate much. They do not take advantage of the latest technologies that might extend the lives of their core technology or reduce costs. For example, passenger trains in the 1960s did not computerize their ticket sales much. The US Post Office does not offer these envelopes like the ones that FedEx has where you fill in the ZIP code and other information in boxes on the front, so the package can can be easily read by automated equipment. Industries with obsolescent but still vital and profitable core technology often use the improvements to extend the life of their technology. The classic example is clipper ships which were introduced after the first oceangoing steamships. They use the latest advances in marine engineering, except for the power source. - Jed
