Six More Trends to Watch in 2011

Before throwing out some ideas for this year, I want first to say that the trends in my earlier posts (other than Google Buzz) aren’t over yet. Each continues to evolve over time, with greater adoption, better applications, and solid case studies. So in 2011, the above trends will solidify into the mainstream of our technology landscape (some more than others). Who knows some smart kid will resurrect MySpace or bring a different touch to it?

Here are some more trends to watch for this year, in no particular order:

1. Location, location, location. This should have been on my 2010 list, but it was still early. Within months after my trends post, location exploded, and I professed my love for Whrrl, Foursquare, and the like, and I was recently blown away by Glyph: tip-of-iceberg stuff.I constantly use AroundMe and have started to use Foodspotting when I travel. And have you seen Path? ShowNearby is also 1 of the top downloading apps on the iPhone.

2. Semantic technologies. Hard for the layperson to grasp, but the applications will continue to improve and impress. Imperfect but interesting: Qwiki, iGlue, Wolfram Alpha, and Evri.

3. Crowdsourcing, crowdfunding, crowdproducing. You ain’t seen nothing yet in terms of what crowds can do. Real time traffic from Waze, crowdfunding through Kickstarter and Profounder, and many more examples not yet built will be transforming business, creativity, production, process.

4. QR Codes. I’m still wrapping my head around them, but they are worth watching, learning more about, and using.

5. iPad (and other tablets). I’ll be honest: I don’t love my iPad. But really, it isn’t a lack of love for the device, which is sleek and überportable. The applications don’t do it justice. You can’t just port what was on the computer to the iPhone and then to the iPad. You have to think differently. In 2011, some companies will do just that. And..to be very honest, iPad needs to enable Flash to be fully accepted by the techies.

6. Apps commerce and communities. When was the last time you bought software in a box? That activity will continue to decrease. I’m pretty sure the Apple App Store will have plenty of competition cropping up in the next year, including the Chrome Web Store, Google Apps Marketplace, and all the mobile device-specific stores, as well as apps communities such as OneForty.com. Developers will have more and more outlets for different versions of the apps they’re producing. Marketers will get into the game as well.

Way into the future? I know 2011 isn’t the year, but soon, touch screens will be the norm. My own 4-year-old son touches every screen he sees, because he has no concept that not every screen operates like an iPod, iPhone, or iPad. Soon he won’t have to look at me after touching the television screen to say, “Dad, it’s not working.”

What trends are you watching in 2011?