Emerging PC-based telephone call management and "digital darkroom" applications could have one very important technology in common: the Universal Serial Bus (USB). Computer Telephony Integration Will a telephone be your next PC peripheral? By connecting PCs with telephones, USB technology could play a central role in the emerging application area of computer telephony integration (CTI). CTI merges the features of the telephone with software-based call management capabilities and a Graphical User Interface on the PC. Whether in the home or at the office, a PC with CTI call management software and a USB-connected telephone can screen, sort and forward calls and also maintain personal "phone mailboxes" for the storage of voice messages, faxes and e-mail messages. Mitel Corporation, a leading telecommunications supplier, demonstrated the world's first USB-compliant telephone at the Universal Serial Bus Developers Conference in February 1996. In addition to simplifying connectivity by use of a single connector type, the benefits of USB in CTI applications include the ability to plug in or remove a phone while the PC stays up and running. In addition, USB hubs allow users to add a phone and up to 126 other peripherals all at the same time to only one serial port on the PC. USB's data rate is considerably higher than many traditional serial ports, enabling the high-speed transfer of data, fax, as well as voice messages. Digital Imaging: Connecting Cameras to PCs Taking snapshots of the kids with a new digital camera, downloading the image files to your PC and sharing the photos with family members over the Internet may sound a little far-out. But it could become a daily fact of life for users of home multimedia PCs. Today's easy to use digital cameras employ electronic sensors in place of film, converting photo images into digital data which can then be downloaded to a home PC for instant viewing, editing, sharing and storage. The Universal Serial Bus will help make digital photography even simpler and more convenient by providing a fast and easy way to connect digital cameras and PCs. Today's PC technology provides the ideal platform for a variety of exciting new digital photography and image editing applications, from adding photos to e-mail to creating custom holiday greeting cards. In addition to reducing download time, the ability to plug a digital camera into a PC and then remove it without switching off the computer could become one of USB's most popular consumer benefits. In addition, USB's "one-fits-all" connector type is designed to take a lot of the guesswork out of deciding where to attach the camera in the first place.

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