09-11-2009, 08:32 PM
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The JavaRing is a tiny wearable computer with 6 kilobytes of RAM. Six K may not sound like much, but it is 20 percent more memory than the first computer I ever used (back in high school in 1973): an ancient (even at the time) Danish second-generation computer called Gier or A Java Ring is a finger ring that contains a small microprocessor with built-in
capabilities for the user, a sort of smart card that is wearable on a finger. Sun
Microsystemsâ„¢s Java Ring was introduced at their Java One Conference in 1998
and, instead of a gemstone, contained an inexpensive microprocessor in a stainlesssteel iButton running a Java virtual machine and preloaded with applets (little application programs). The rings were built by Dallas Semiconductor.
Workstations at the conference had "ring readers" installed on them that
downloaded information about the user from the conference registration system. This information was then used to enable a number of personalized services. For example, a robotic machine made coffee according to user preferences, which it downloaded when they snapped the ring into another "ring reader."
The Java Ring is an extremely secure Java-powered electronic token with a
continuously running, unalterable real-time clock and rugged packaging, suitable for many applications. The jewel of the Java Ring is the Java iButton -- a onemillion transistor, single chip trusted microcomputer with a powerful Java Virtual Machine (JVM) housed in a rugged and secure stainless-steel case.
