Prototypes are literally the "vision things." They used to be about the future. Now they define our perception of the present- so much so that the challenge has become for actual products to live up to the prototypes. In a room at IBM headquarters in Armonk, New York is a computer unlike any you have ever seen. Its futuristic frame disguises the thinness of a flat-panel display, thin keyboard and penpad, all separate parts that fit together. You can talk to it, write on it, and draw on it at the same time as your buddy works on another networked machine. IBM calls it Leapfrog, and it is a declaration of principle - a promise, a teaser, the equivalent of the show cars with which Detroit tempted us for years. It is the product of a company eager to change its image and show itself as visionary - eager to reinvent itself. [/] wired 2.04