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The Next Big Thing and Why Should I Care?

This site is for archival purposes only. 

Find out what is happening with the Twin Cities Drupal User Group at https://tcdrupal.org/

Timeslot: 
Friday, 1:45pm - 2:15pm
Room: 
446
Track: 
Front-end Design & Development
Experience Level: 
Intermediate
Session Length: 
30 minutes

The Next Big Thing and Why Should I Care?

I have a confession to make. Even though I work in tech, and have seen so many changes over my years in web design, at heart I am a skeptic. I read about new technology, I see and hear the hype, I see my friends and colleagues dive in, and I think, “Meh”.

  • Smart speaker? Meh. Why can’t I just click and type instead?
  • Augmented reality? Meh. Why do I want to look at the real world through my phone screen?
  • AI? This isn’t truly artificial intelligence, is it? So why should I care?

But as much as I want may dismiss some things as “uninteresting’ or “not ready for prime time”, I am also a curious person, and I do care about technology. At some point the next big thing will truly “arrive” and changes the way we lead our lives. It may be in small ways, or it could lead to greater things I’ve never imagined.

Let’s take a run down on today’s “next big things” and try to understand them better. Specifically, (a) what is this and why should I care? (b) how can I start using these today? (c) is there a practical application with Drupal?

Topics include:

  • Voice-activated search and smart speakers
  • Artificial intelligence
  • Chatbots
  • Augmented and virtual reality
  • AMP
  • GDPR
  • Decoupled and Progressively Decoupled Drupal
Learning Objectives & Outcomes: 

Discuss the “next big things” in online technology and try to understand them better. For each topic we'll discuss:

  • what is this and why should I care?
  • how can I start using these today?
  • is there a pratical application with Drupal?