Recently, Teresa and I listened to Leo LaPorte's Tech Guy Podcast, and Leo was talking about the resolution and size of monitors and TVs growing exponentially. Soon, he suggested, entire walls will serve as giant televisions, and with the growth of processor speed and the coming day when we'll all have fiber internet or something equally fast coming into our homes, besides redefining "Home Theater," web chatting will take on an entire new significance.

Teresa has a sister in England who can rarely attend family gatherings, and our family misses her and her husband. Enter lifelike resolution, real-time streaming, a hi-res webcam, and a wall-size display. Suddenly, they can attend family gatherings while still across the pond. Their wall becomes the living room of one of the families here in the States, and that family's wall becomes their living room in England. It's almost like being there, except for handing them a gift from under the tree or throwing wrapping paper at them, due to the glass barrier between us.

When not being used for this purpose, the video wall could take on a screensaver-like use, becoming a brick wall, a tropical vista, doorway into a fantasy forest filled with unicorns and dragons, or whatever you desire. Companies that specialize in virtual décor will spring up so you can purchase that rendering of the Gryffindor Common Room you've always wanted.

Now, this technology is still a long way away, and making it affordable looms even further, yet I look forward to visiting my great grandchildren even when I can't leave the nursing home.