Technology

James Francis

I recently finished Rod McQueen's biography on Research in Motion and BlackBerry, a somewhat exhausting but still interesting read written at the height of the phone’s success. The second half is dull; being so new at the time, the iPhone is only mentioned once, but the opening chapters are fascinating, charting how RIM pioneered many wireless data technologies for the simple task of sending email to and from your cellphone.

Today, that capability is a given. We just expect it to happen. And if those technologies were to stop working, our modern world would collapse. No more "urgent!!!" messages at 6pm from our bosses, but no free WiFi at the gym, either.