Robotics is one of those fields that seem perpetually on the verge of becoming the next big thing. They have become a common fixture on most factory floors, in spite of the backlash created by labor unions. They have more recently begun to become fixtures in the house in the form of the Roomba, which is the current market leader according to an article posted on CNET.

In fact, there has been a flurry of announcements recently about robotics. They are doing everything from watching over RFID-tagged children to helping stroke patients recover. They have even taken on driving across the desert much better than they did in this event last year.

The real sleeper is the Lego Mindstorms kits, which allow kids to build and program mobile robots out of snap-together parts. Competitions are springing up at a number of grass-roots events to see who can build the best robots with these kits.

Are we on the verge of a "year of the robot"? Just like the year of the LAN it was predicted ad nauseum but no one could really determine when it happened. Did it happen behind our backs while we were watching something else?

Larry Mittag