A part of the disconnect between the way computing power is packaged and the way people would like to use it, is the way computing power for "information/organizational" functionality is divided from "entertainment" functionality.

For most of what people want to do, a netbook has enough or almost enough horsepower. Heck, even an iPhone has enough power for most of it. The only thing you need a full-blown desktop for is for heavy duty Photoshop, graphics software, gaming, or something demanding like that.

So, note how the form factors are disconnected from capabilities:

    - iPhone - capable of word processing, but lacks a keyboard to do a lot of 
        it comfortably
    - All-in-one desktop machine - often capable of demanding gaming, but 
        marketed as the email/web machine for your grandmother.  

I see computing coming in two major forms in the future: highly portable, or home/office integrated.

Much of our personal data will be on devices sized like the iPhone or Blackberry. They will be small enough to go everywhere with us. What doesn't fit there will live in game-console like machines in our homes, or on office workstations/high-end laptops, and will move around using the network. As networks get better, much of that will live in the "cloud."

Given better form factors (dockable screens and keyboards and other, newer input devices) the "go-everywhere" device will subsume more and more of our computing tasks. There will no longer be netbooks. There will be "things that allow us to word process/schedule/surf more comfortably" by providing better form factors for interface, but the data will live in our pocket and be synced with the cloud. There will be "other things with the compute/graphics/storage horsepower for specialized tasks." These will be the "hubs, consoles, workstations." These will be the only stationary things, because they will be the only things that have to be stationary.

Everything else will be interface. (The OQO will live at last!)

Yeah. I'm actually completely in love with my AAO (and I even store my music on it, since I got a HD). There's nothing I need a full blown computer for, and if I really need the screen estate and keyboard, then I just use external ones. I've written a huge amount of code on my daily bus ride.

I use my desktop keyboard, a Happy Hacking Professional, with my netbook. Both fit in my standard laptop backpack with plenty of room, and then I don't have to compromise on the keyboard. (The small screen doesn't bother me; xmonad makes it easy to deal with.)

Is there a Mac version of the Happy Hacking keyboard? I had looked at them before and really liked them, never bought one though.

There's dip switches for mac/PC modes.

Interesting, I'll have to check out the keyboard. I use wmii, but same idea. ;)