Basically, pervasive, or ubiquitous, computing is based on the idea that chips can be embedded in just about anything – including human beings.

At the heart of pervasive computing is the notion of a network so all-encompassing that everything can and will be interconnected, which is a good thing, or bad idea, depending on your point of view.

Whatever your leanings, pervasive computing is here already. To get acquainted, check out the following links. – Compiled by Karen E. Peterson.

IBM Pervasive Computing
All about pervasive computing, including current applications. IBM is a major player in pervasive computing.

Marc Weiser: 'Father' of Ubiquitous Computing
Former head of the Computer Science Laboratory at Xerox PARC, the late Mark Weiser was called "the father of ubiquitous computing." This page is part of his Web site. Great stuff.

IBM Systems Journal
Good reference page.

MIT: Things That Think
'Things That Think' just about says it all. Besides, it's from MIT.

The Ubiquitous Telepresence Project
"The main idea of ubiquitous telepresence (UT) is to allow users to project their physical presence anywhere on the Internet." Excellent links to ubiquitous-specific projects..

MIT Technology Review
This edition featured Pervasive Computing as the topic of the week.

Pervasive Computing Reading List
As advertised, a reading list on pervasive computing, including articles and applications. Go for it!

IEEE Pervasive Computing Magazine
Magazine of "mobile and ubiquitous systems."

eBiquity.org
Good site for news about pervasive computing. Lots of stuff to read.

MIT Project Oxygen
"In the future, computation will be freely available everywhere, like batteries and power sockets, or oxygen in the air we breathe." Take a deep breath and dive in ...

iApplianceWeb.com
"Your information appliance resource." News and views on the upcoming pervasive-computing devices.

PointServers.org
A niche news site, it covers the world of Point Servers, which the site defines as "the software/hardware infrastructure and application platforms that drive ubiquitous computing systems in the field."

Panel: "Will Pervasive Computing be Manageable?"
"Computers are being integrated into everything." This is a page announcing a panel discussion. Good thinking points. Links to panelists' home pages

List of Ubiquitous Computing-related Sites and Projects.
You betcha! Comprehensive link-list put together by Bell Labs researcher, Cliff Young.

"Moving from Security to Distributed Trust in Ubiquitous Computing Environments"
A paper with "an example of pervasive/ubiquitous environments that will soon be a reality." Also available in Adobe Acrobat at www.cs.umbc.edu/~finin/papers/ieee01/ieee01.pdf

Educause
Articles pertaining to pervasive computing from the EDUCAUSE Information Resources Library.

Project Aura
Carnegie Mellon University project site. Description: "Aura's goal is to provide each user with an invisible halo of computing and information services that persists regardless of location."

Intelligent Environments Resource Page
From Microsoft Research, page is a "clearinghouse for WWW links related to the budding field of Intelligent Environments."

"The Design Challenge of Pervasive Computing
Paper that delves into the "cultural consequences" of having "hundreds of microchips for every man, woman and child on the planet."

"Ubiquitous Computing in the Military Environment"
Paper that poses the question: "if ubiquitous computing viewed as beneficial for the military, what research would be necessary to achieve a military ubiquitous computing environment? Also available in Adobe Acrobat at www.darpa.mil/ito/research/uc/SPIE-f.pdf