Getting Smaller All the Time

More and more desktop computers have been replaced by laptops (two of the three computers I have in my office are laptops--one Mac and one PC--while the only desktop computer I have is a Mac G3 I bought in 1998 and is little more than an iTunes jukebox these days). The desktop may be on its way back--but only as the "base station" to link to handhelds:

It's hard to believe, but there's a high-tech company that got rid of its notebooks.

The company's CEO, tired of the expenses involved in buying and supporting notebooks, took them all away and gave the 700-plus employees desktops and "smart" handhelds, said Al Delattre, a partner in the communications and high-tech practice at Accenture, which worked with the unidentified company on the transition.

"They loved it," he said. "You give a senior executive a laptop, and they generally only use three applications: e-mail, a browser and IM."

A dozen other companies are in the midst of a similar conversion, or contemplating it, Delattre added.