Lessons From The Future

 

 

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Volume IX
Lessons From The Future

STOCK QUOTES VIA SATELLITE 

FORTY YEARS AGO DICK TRACY INTRODUCED IT. WE HAVEN'T QUITE REACHED IT YET BUT THEY THEY CAME AWFULLY CLOSE RECENTLY IN CHICAGO.

IMAGINE YOU ARE STANDING ON A STREET CORNER JUST WATCHING THE WORLD GO BY. A YOUNG LADY PULLS OUT OF THE CROWD AT THE CORNER, OPENS HER PURSE AND PULLS OUT WHAT APPEARS AT FIRST GLANCE TO BE THE FAMILIAR POCKET CALCULATOR. SHE PUNCHES IN SOME NUMBERS, THEN WHIPS OUT A CONCEALED ANTENNAE AND LOOKS AT THE RESULT. HAS SHE JUST FIGURED OUT HER BANK DRAFT OR WHAT? NEXT WEEK IT COULD BE THAT BUT THIS WEEK IN CHICAGO SHE MIGHT BE ONE OF THE FIRST WITH THE 'MOSTESS' -- THE NEW QUOTREK COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM. IT IS TRULY HIGH-TECH. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MAKING HUNDREDS AND THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IS A MATTER OF KNOWING THE LATEST STOCK PRICES. IN THIS WORLD HIGH SPEED COMMUNICATIONS ARE CRITICAL.

THIS IS HOW IT WORKS: BACK IN NEW YORK THE NYSE, AMEX AND NASDAQ STOCK EXCHANGES AND THE CME, CBT, AND CEC COMMODITY MARKETS PROVIDE A REAL TIME DATASTREAM TO THEIR WEST COAST COMPUTER CONTROL CENTRE. THIS MEANS THAT THESE FAMILIAR STOCK EXCHANGES ARE SENDING OUT THEIR UP-TO-THE- FEMTOSECOND STOCK AND COMMODITY PRICE INFORMATION.

SUCH DATA IS ENCODED AND PROCESSED BY HIGH SPEED VAX COMPUTERS AND TRANSMITTED FROM A LOCAL EARTH STATION UPLINK (PENDING COMPLETION OF THE FIBRE OPTIC LINK AND THEIR TELEPORT ON STATEN ISLAND). MESSAGES ARE NARROW-BEAMED TO WESTERN UNION'S WESTAR IV SATELLITE LOCATED OVER THE EQUATOR AT 22,300 MILE ALTITUDE. THE SIGNAL IS THEN WIDE- BEAMED DOWN TO SELECTED FM RADIO STATIONS IN MAJOR CITIES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA.

THAT WAS NO CALCULATOR IN THE LADY'S HAND. THAT WAS A LIGHTWEIGHT CORDLESS RECEIVER WITH PROGRAMMABLE MEMORY AND 40-CHARACTER LIQUID CRYSTAL SCREEN. IT DECODES, PROCESSES (AT UP TO 30,000 BITS PER SECOND) AND DISPLAYS WITHIN SECONDS OF THE TRANSACTIONS ON THE EXCHANGE FLOOR THOSE ALL IMPORTANT UPDATES. WHO KNOWS, THESE DAYS IF THE STOCK OF HER COMPANY DROPS FAR ENOUGH, SHE MAY NOT HAVE TO CONTINUE ON TO WORK.

THE UNIT WEIGHS LESS THAN A POUND (400 GRAMS) CAN MONITOR 7000 STOCKS (A REVIEW OF THE "LOOP" OF ALL THOSE STOCKS TAKES JUST 45 SECONDS) AND CAN GIVE INSTANT REVIEW OF A PERSONAL PORTFOLIO ALONG WITH PRIVACY, FLEXIBILITY AND CONVENIENCE. YOU CAN EVEN TAKE IT TO BED. MEANWHILE, YOUR LOCAL FM STATION STILL PLAYS GOOD MUSIC BUT ITS "SIDE- CHANNEL" BROADCASTS TO QUOTREK UNITS WITHIN A 30 TO 40 MILE (50-60 KILOMETRES) RANGE OF THEIR STATION.

COMING NEXT IS A TWO-WAY MODEL ON WHICH YOU CAN TYPE UP TO 500 WORDS AND BEAM YOUR OWN IMMORTAL MESSAGES TO THE HEAVENS. MORE INFORMATION: JAMES F. WEST, PRESIDENT, DATASPEED, INC., 1900 S. NORFOLK STREET, SAN MATEO, CA 94403.

PHONE: (415) 571-1800. TELEX 278351

 

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