I remember my first glimpse into the future. In August 1992, when I arrived in California as a student, I discovered during orientation that the university required all incoming students to have something called an email account. To access it, I had to call up a text-based mail client on Unix, using a series of line commands. That fall, the incoming Clinton administration announced a plan to invest billions of dollars into civilian research and technology. Now I carry in my pocket a tiny device that, in addition to everything the Classic II did, can play movies, deliver the news, give directions, send money, book airline tickets and check my royalty statements.

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