Correct! Marketing companies produce tons of technology reports – but many are commissioned by the very companies whose products they promote, so these reports should be used with caution.

Correct! These are all common business models for technology companies.

Correct! Many times, the winning technology standard is demonstrably weaker than competing standards.

Correct! The gist of this powerful concept is that old habits are hard to break; having started down a path, society often sticks with an older technology because the costs of changing are too great, or the benefits don’t outweigh the hassle of making the change.

Correct!

Correct! Because of the tendency for new technologies to destroy the value of their existing products and business lines, tech companies need to constantly innovate.

Correct! PR representatives can have good information for you, but it’s important to be aware. One way to defend yourself against the PR spin is to go to the PR rep from a rival company or a promoter of a competing technology. The PR rival often has plenty of reasons why their rival will fail.

Correct! Because technology reporters have specialized knowledge and many sources on technological change, they are often asked by editors to report on social and cultural trends arising from those changes.

Correct! For example, the telephone was conceived by its inventor, Alexander Graham Bell, as a way to broadcast music and news – as a kind of radio. He never imagined that the technology’s chief use would be for two individuals to talk to each other over a single line.

Correct!