On campus, handhelds are where it’s at

This fall, some college tour guides will have software for brains.

It’s not quite a scene from “I, Robot,” but Arizona State University is providing an alternative to standard tour guides on its 700-acre desert campus: handheld GPS-assisted tours that use satellite-guided technology to help prospective students and their families find their way around.

The PDA-style devices, with their bright color displays, know when users get to designated “hot spots” and point out nearby buildings and activities. The system weaves in recorded audio scripts — broadcast to users via wireless headphones — from upbeat students who share anecdotes about the university.

The GPS (global positioning system) tour is just one example of innovations schools are offering to woo increasingly tech-savvy students:

• At Boston University, prospective communications students who use AOL Instant Messenger can now send an instant message to the Office of Student Services in addition to contacting the school by phone, letter or e-mail.

• The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia offers new students an online community, dubbed “Pennster,” where they can search other new students’ user profiles, see who’s in their dorm, and “meet” in online chat rooms before arriving on campus. Positive reaction has been “overwhelming,” says spokeswoman Julie McWilliams; more than 1,900 students — about 75 percent of the freshman class — are signed-up.

• The University of Dayton (Ohio) features “Wendy,” a fictional student who stars in her own reality-based Web show about a new student’s experiences, part of the university’s Virtual Orientation program.

Colleges today need to appeal to students’ love of technology - to kids, the Internet is “the fundamental equivalent of electricity,” says Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project, which tracks Net use in the United States.

Jupiter Research says 18.5 million teens 12-17 (73 percent) went online regularly in 2003; an estimated 19.4 million (76 percent) will do so this year. Once kids get to college, the percentage is even higher: 96 percent, Jupiter says.

Zigbee appears ready to take off

Technology watchers expect big things from a low-power, low-speed wireless standard known as Zigbee, which is designed to relay simple bits of information from machine to machine. Think of municipal light posts telling city computers when it’s time to change bulbs, or tiny sensors passing along word to soldiers about approaching enemies.

Now comes further evidence that Zigbee is about to take off.

A new report from ABI Research predicts that only 1 million Zigbee devices will be sold next year, but by 2006 that figure will jump to 80 million. The reasons for optimism: Broader standards for the technology, plus new efforts to sell it in Asia, according to analyst Chris Lopez.

With Zigbee, data moves at speeds as low as 20 kilobits per second, but that’s good enough for devices that have simple things to relay. Zigbee backers say the technology could lead to new kinds of automated sensors, home devices and industrial equipment.

Another analyst firm, In-Stat/MDR, said last year that worldwide sales of Zigbee chipsets could reach 160 million by 2008.

AOL, Office Depot cater to novices

America Online and Office Depot will partner to offer a $299 easy-to-operate PC, designed for first-time computer buyers and novice users.

The price of the Intel-powered computer includes a monitor, printer, speakers, mouse and keyboard. Buyers also must subscribe to AOL dialup service for a year at $23.90 a month. The PC package will be in Office Depot’s stores this month, with other retail partners to be named later.

“We’re addressing the needs of millions of Internet intenders who are first-time PC buyers or novice computer users,” said Kenn Turner, senior vice president and general manager of AOL Key Audiences. He indicated that Hispanics and senior citizens are prime customers for the package.

Slate could getch $12 million

The price for Microsoft’s Slate could be as much as $12 million, nearly twice its annual revenue, according to media deal analysts. “There is an intangible ego value to owning Slate,” said Jeff Dearth, an investment banker with DeSilva & Phillips, the New York Sun reported.

The online publication’s message boards and reader e-mails indicate “an unusual brand loyalty,” added Quincy Smith of Allen and Co. “You have an attractive value proposition to sell to advertisers,” he said.

Reports of Microsoft’s interest in selling Slate surfaced about two weeks ago. A spokesman for the online magazine declined to comment on the Sun story.

IE alternatives get attention

Concern about online security was renewed earlier this summer and provoked new interest in alternatives to browsing the Web with tools other than Microsoft’s Internet Explorer. IE’s widespread adoption has made it an attractive target for hackers, cyberthieves and show-off programmers.

The Mozilla Foundation, an outgrowth of Netscape, said downloads of its free Firefox browser doubled. Norway’s Opera Software said sales of its browser nearly tripled in July from June, The New York Times reported. And data from a Web traffic analysis firm showed the number of visits to Web sites by people using Explorer declined 1.3 percent.

But to put this in perspective, the five most popular browsers, after IE, together have about 5 percent of the market, the Times said. Microsoft’s IE has 94 percent, the searchers at WebSideStory said.