Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!olivea!apple!limbo!taylor
From: rjg@cs.aber.ac.uk (Bob Gautier)
Newsgroups: comp.society
Subject: Re: Predictions on what ISDN can be used for?
Message-ID: <1330@limbo.Intuitive.Com>
Date: 12 Oct 90 19:16:12 GMT
Sender: taylor@limbo.Intuitive.Com
Organization: UCW,Aberystwyth,WALES,UK
Lines: 41
Approved: taylor@Limbo.Intuitive.Com

If I were using ISDN to take orders for my pizza parlour, I wouldn't do it
using speech only.  I'd also offer a software package, freely copyable,
which would provide an interactive pizza design and ordering facility.
This would, for example:

a) Offer the full menu

b) Allow people to design pizzas by choosing items and combining them

c) Allow people to store their favourite designs

d) Send orders to me when completed

e) Possibly even allow progress chasing, or notification of dispatch
   via a callback

f) Periodically update itself as I change my prices, menu, etc.

This software would be an example of an ``electronic shop''.  Instead of
visiting a real shop to buy something, I visit a piece of software instead.
This has various benefits all round.  For example:

a) Calls are shorter (not important for cost, but possibly important for
   reducing congestion on my line and my customer's lines).
   Customers can take as long as they like creating an order without
   tying up my staff or anyone's communications link.
   
b) Privacy doesn't have to be compromised (personal data can be stored
   locally -- you can do ``same again'' ordering without caller-ID).
   Of course, some personal data has to be released in some cases, in
   order to make payments or to set up callbacks.
   
c) It opens up a new piece of ground for competition amongst service providers.
   Naturally, I want *my* pizza ordering facility to be the friendliest,
   most flexible, most fun piece of software to use -- certainly I want
   it to be the most popular *pizza ordering* software!
   This will create a demand for nice interactive software of a fairly
   ephemeral nature -- like video games without the hard real time
   problems.

Bob Gautier