In 2021, everyone will be immortal -- sort of. Imagine a world where every piece of information -- every photograph, song, magazine article -- that people view or experience during their lives will be digitally stored, catalogued and easily accessible via the home computer. Traditional carpooling and want-ads will be things of the past, thanks to wireless computer networks that link people -- even strangers -- instantly when they need a ride home from work or want to sell their old rowing machine.

Sound like science fiction? Flash back 20 years and consider whether double-digit-gigabyte hard drives, graphically based-desktop PC tools and the current multitude of Internet- and wireless-enabled communications devices would be a reality a scant two decades after the launch of the first IBM PC. With the 20th anniversary of the Aug. 12, 1981, launch of the IBM 5150 Personal Computer approaching, many within the computer industry are pausing to reflect on how far personal computing has come -- and how far it is likely to go in the next 20 years. Among those looking back and looking forward are Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates and Andy Grove, co-founder and chairman of Intel, who today attend a "PC 20/20" event at the San Jose Technology Museum.