Computer operators going the way of telephone operators?

In the early 20th century, the exponential growth of the telephone system caused some to estimate that, by mid-century, half of the people in the country would be working as telephone operators. Automation, of course, stepped in. Fewer operators were needed to support many, many more customers.

So, too, it seems to be happening in the computing world. In the early 90s, we started hearing the term "lights-out computing," referring to a computer room that pretty much ran itself, requiring no lights because there were no people in the room. That trend is continuing, such that, within a decade, there won't be a computer room, at least not one inside the business. It used to be that many business had to generate their own electricity. As the overall electrical grid system improved in capacity and reliability, businesses found it simpler, cheaper, and better to rely on a utility rather than manage their own. In time, we'll buy computing cycles in the way that we buy electrical and phone service.