I'm in Cambridge, Mass., today and tomorrow to talk about the way we live with computers and what we can expect in the way of future technology.

First to Harvard and The Berkman Center for Internet & Society, and then on to MIT and the Media Lab.

Stay tuned. I hope we'll be able to talk about the implications of technology on the newspaper industry and society.

Good evening, Carla...

I'll give you this: when you undertake a project you certainly know how to hit all the "hot spots".

You said, "I hope we'll be able to talk about the implications of technology on the newspaper industry and society."

You must realize we could easily fill an entire blog with just reasoned comments on the impact, for good or ill, that technology is having on society-at-large. That is somewhat off the track, I am certain, but I have been watching over your shoulders as you have done this marvelously-informative trip of yours. When you are at MIT, I can hardly wait to see what you have to say about technology then.

A FULL report, of course, is mandated. None of these three paragraph statements designed to keep us watching and reading. I cannot speak for all the rest, but you already have had my undivided attention since the beginning.

Hurry up. I'm anxious to see what you conclude. 8-)

Boy, and I thought my boss was giving me pressure!

I think I've already come to my conclusion: there is no magic answer for newspapers. There is no single change or technology - that if adopted - will bring back the sphere of influence we once enjoyed.

There are simply too many players in the game now.

But everyone I've talked to so far agrees on one point: newspapers have the twin advantages of investigative clout and local experience.

We just need to figure out how technology can help us do it better.

Some specific suggestions ARE coming, but they'll only be suggestions - and most likely only relevent and applicable to Spokane. Each newspaper and the community it serves has its own tolerance for change.

My goal is to keep this conversation going, for in the talking will come the answers.

Good morning, Carla...

You stated, "But everyone I've talked to so far agrees on one point: newspapers have the twin advantages of investigative clout and local experience.

We just need to figure out how technology can help us do it better."

I could not agree more.

I sometimes chuckle to myself, especially when you are on the road and being exposed to different kinds of technology at a rapid-fire pace, and trying to integrate all of what you have learned into a cogent plan for the future. I cannot help but forget that, in the beginning, you were admittedly a technophobe.

Therefore in your final summation how technology has changed you during this exploration of the newsroom of the future. My question of clients is always "how can we integrate technology into our lives and make ourselves more productive and content?"

For, without inner happiness, technology for all the good that it does, is just another distraction. As journalists, we must keep that thought vibrant and alive on the burner of life.

Keep up the good work!