Zero Configuration Networking: The Definitive Guide

4.1. Zero Configuration Operation

Finding services should be as easy as turning on a lamp. If technological devices continue to be unreasonably hard to set up and use, the market for those devices is going to be stifled because the buying public simply won't be willing to expend the time and effort it takes to get them to work.

Consider a table lamp. The customer needs to plug the lamp into a live AC outlet, the lamp needs to have a working bulb properly in place, and the customer needs to locate and operate the switch. When a customer flicks a switch and the light does not come on, there are not many things that could have gone wrong. The tech support script is pretty basic: "You say the light doesn't come on. Did you try the bulb in a different lamp to make sure the bulb is good? Did you try connecting some other appliance to the outlet to make sure it's providing power? What? I see. You hadn't actually plugged the lamp into a power outlet? That may be your problem. Sure, I'll hold while you try that. Works now? Great. No, really it's no problem, your service contract allows you unlimited calls for the first year you own your lamp." This scenario is comical because, of course, no one has technical support service contracts for table lamps. We need to arrive at a world where we think of consumer electronics and networked devices the same way we think of table lamps.