Inspired by the latest episode of Bad Voltage, I thought it would be interesting to see what tech predictions LQ members have for 2015. Post them in this thread and next year we can look back and see how prescient the LQ community is.

--jeremy

I predict gimp 2.10 would not be available by 2015.

Steamboxes will finally become available and further improve the availability of games for Linux.
A consumer version of the Occulus Rift will be released and become a big success, though it will cause some injuries due to its tendency to drop people to the floor (not unlike after the release of the Wii and the disasters with controllers flying around the room or being hit in people's faces while playing).
Google's attempt to revolutionize e-mails will be a massive flop.

I may live under a rock, but I'd make numerous burnt offerings for:

A voice/gesture based programming language , even if a descendant of BASIC, that could essentially 'script' my tablet/phone devices (hopefully for Android, as I don't wish to buy another set, but it would be tempting).

Some sort of open hardware device will ship that will gain sufficient marketshare to influence the entire hardware market, giving way to a market of open hardware.

Net neutrality will be neutered. Encryption backdoors will be mandatory on smartphones at least and then on everything.

We will go back to using the commandline, with green screens, & dot matrix printers.

... to get rid of worldwide attacks on freedom relentlessly orginating from the USA and UK since 911?

... to take over the control of economy worldwide?

... to push forward linux?

Definively, the world economic balance will change. As China and India are, together about half of the world's population, they will have more influence in the future than american money does now.Their respective mentalities, largely not known nor understood by westerners, does not easily allow Europeans and Americans to adjust to upcoming changing business rules.

I therefore foresee the end of western egemony. The sad part is that this may be harmfull in more than one way to a lot of people. If they choose to enforce peace on the world, China and India will most definitely not follow the United States's path to it.

Historically, we had the "Made In Japan" wave of the 70's, the "Made In Taiwan" of the 90's and now there is the "Made In China" that started around 2000. India has been trying to actively get in the bandwagon and had scored more and more successes since 2010.

Meanwhile, jobs lost in the western world has plummeted steadily since the end of the 80's.

Well, personally, I dream of a world like Gene Roddenberry created 50 years ago, a world without money, but full of goodwill, dedication, sense of accomplishment and personnal satisfaction for all... with a few bumps along the way to spice life up, of course!

As technology advances, so is it's ubiquity. This pushes us toward a future à la Star Trek.

Human imagination is limitless.
Let us hope greed and stupidity both have a limit.

That's one of the most horrifying predictions so far.

Regarding dot Matrix printer prediction:-

But, of course, most people use dot matrix printers all of the time these days, except that they hae evolved and are now called inkjet printers.

I have an inkjet printer and no it does not make a noise like pig being cut in half, so no it is not a dot matrix printer. It also doesn't generate huge quantities of perforated paper scraps.

What is horrific about my prediction?
The fact that, for once, westerners might not be on the right side of the fence?
Who are we, westerners, to think for a second we are right and the rest of the world is wrong?
My point is "In the last 2 centuries the white man has abused, corrupted, polluted, killed and enslaved the rest of the world."

These people might very well take the retribution path.

Who would actually blame or condemn them?

Through extreme materialism, blind race to profit, no councern for anyone's future and monopolystic capitalism, the western world has mortgaged the future of Earth behond good sense.

Technology might save us... If we free it from the monopolies!
Technology might save us... If we dare use it wisely!
Technology might save us... If it is known as a mean, not an end!

We've decided to have a little fun with this. Two weeks from today we'll randomly select one prediction and that member will be able to pick one item from the LQ Merchandise Store on us.

--jeremy

Xfce 4.12 will be released. The next version of Slackware will be released shortly afterwards, with Xfce 4.10.

i predict more retail hacking, another major exploit, more linux job postings because of hacking.

It'll be the year of Linux desktop