What is Bluetooth? Think of it as an eighteen-wheeler screaming down the pike, carrying the future of computing with it. The driver is friendly. You can stick out your thumb and hitch a ride, or be left in the dust. Bluetooth is a developing, world wide, open, short-range radio specification focused on communication between the Internet and Net devices, plus it defines communication protocols between devices and computers. To be Bluetooth certified, a device must pass interoperability testing by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), thus assuring that products meeting the specification will be able to interact with all other Bluetooth-certified products and with the Internet.
The five founding members of the Bluetooth SIG are Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Nokia and Toshiba. On December 1, 1999, the founding members announced that 3COM, Lucent, Microsoft, and Motorola have joined the founders to form the Promoter Group with the founding companies. To date, more than 1,200 companies have signed on.
Picture the spaghetti of wires connecting peripherals to a PC, and the PC to the Net, and then imagine them gone. Nice image, isn't it? The technology of Bluetooth centers around a 9mm x 9mm microchip, which functions as a low cost and short range radio link. It provides security for both stationary and mobile devices. The basic function is to provide a standard wireless technology to replace the multitude of propriety cables currently linking computing devices. Better than the image of the spaghetti-free computer system is the ability of the radio technology to network when away from traditional networking structures, such as a business intranet. Even better is the ability to network on an ad hoc basis. For example, imagine being on a business trip with a laptop and a phone. Bluetooth technology allows interfacing the two. Then, picture meeting a client and transferring files without cabling or worrying about protocols.