We've come oddly full circle over the course of the industrial revolution. Once upon a time no human owned more than they (or their mule/ox/wife) could carry, as by necessity we were nomadic. Agriculture caused us to settle, industrialisation brought us to cities, and with a few notable exceptions, all our lifestyles adapted to suit 'settledness'. Now, as we're moving into the post-industrial age, a return to mobility seems to make more sense, and with it new attitudes and beliefs about property.

Steve Roberts ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDaz8vaKzdQ ) is a bit of a hero of mine and I think the first person to really figure out the physical implications of internetworking for the knowledge worker. Steve took his first voyage a few years before I was born, but in that short time we've seen unbelievable changes in society, the economy and of course technology.

I struggle to think of somebody I know personally who couldn't do their job from anywhere in the world, if only they had the courage to demand it. The whole economy seems to be disappearing into the ether and the workforce seems to be slowly following, albeit largely via Bangalore and Beijing. Perhaps most extraordinary is the technological change. I recently built a modern version of Steve's Winnebiko, but I quickly realised that it was a largely pointless task - twenty-odd years of miniaturisation and a whole heap of bandwidth have shrunk almost all of his 125kg trailer rig into an ordinary smartphone. I still get a little thrill every morning at the marvel of technology that lives in my left pocket. Every record, every book, every photograph, a telephone, a camera, a television and much more besides in what previous generations might have described as "something no bigger than a pack of cigarettes".

It is so easy to forget that we already live in the future.