Picture yourself setting the oven, adjusting the thermostat, checking to make sure your kids are doing their homework, pulling down the shades, and turning up the lights -- all without leaving your desk at work.

Or, imagine having the ability to program the time, days of the week, and even seasons of the year on the controls for your lighting, blinds, sprinklers, and heating and cooling functions -- all with one central unit within your home.

Albeit sounding like an episode from The Jetsons, the "home of the future" is hardly science fiction. It's reality. Today's modern home is equipped with the technological intelligence to do just about everything to make our lives easier, right up to drawing our bathwater at the appointed time, not to mention to our perfect temperature liking. In fact, 48 percent of new homes will be prewired for "intelligence" by 2004.

Creating Intelligence

What makes a home intelligent? While retrofitting existing homes one-by-one is one option, a more recent trend is the development of "connected communities." By partnering with residential builders, home technology providers can supply the necessary resources and support needed to fully integrate the "intelligent" lifestyle into new home communities.

Some "intelligent" possibilities include the following:

1. Home Networking. All PCs and printers can be networked together to provide whole house Internet connectivity and email.

2. Home Automation. Homeowners can control lighting, thermostat, security, video and audio systems through the Internet, or with easy-to-use touch screens installed throughout the home. Even fans, blinds, sprinklers, pool and spa can be controlled.

3. Security Systems. An advanced security system, complete with controller, cameras, motion detector and sensors, allows you to have an Internet "home page" at the office, enabling you to check your home's vital signs. You can monitor security cameras, confirm that your kids are home from school through the "webcam," or check on the babysitter -- all with the click of a mouse.

4. Structured Wiring. Structured wiring provides the infrastructure needed to accommodate new technologies. This includes wiring for all computer and Internet functions, cable, security systems, audio, and entertainment systems.

5. Home Theater. Advances in home entertainment now includes new television possibilities such as flat-screen and plasma screen, advanced speaker and surround sound options, and sophisticated, "theater-like" lighting control options. All elements of the home's entertainment system can be combined into one simplified network, including video, audio, DVD, satellite and cable.

The Wireless Revolution

The next wave of "homes of the future" will be defined by the wireless revolution. In a few years from now, technology will become so sophisticated in new homes that it will be possible, for example, to command the doors to lock and the alarm system to activate, using only your voice.

Until about two years ago, home networking was available in a rather primitive form. It was mostly Ethernet-based and performed by computer "enthusiasts." Now, the increased drive to share broadband Internet access and all that goes with it -- faster e-mailing, browsing, downloads -- is putting home networking, especially wireless networking, in the fast lane.

As recently as six months ago, the consensus among experts in the home technology industry was that there's room for both wired and wireless. That consensus is beginning to shift. Wireless technology soon will become more relevant because it's been found to be less expensive and more convenient. People really don't want to deal with a lot of "stuff." They just want affordable technology that will work for them.

Perhaps an even bigger advantage is the huge perception that wireless is simpler to install and use. As a case in point, RTNeilson recently conducted a survey of 600 PC users. More than 70 percent had two or more computers to be networked in their homes, and 73 percent said they'd be willing to install a wireless network themselves if given detailed instructions.

Integration is Key

The key to making a home truly intelligent is effective integration. Voice, high-speed data, video, security, and automation should be integrated into a single, user-friendly, networked package. This package can increase the value of your home (without adding square footage) and make it more attractive to prospective buyers.

Wireless will be the defining element of the next home of the future, but in the mean time, home intelligence -- wires and all -- has come a long way in the last 10 years. The ability to integrate has changed everything. The Jetsons weren't far off the mark after all.

Brian Ramphal is president and CEO of My Home Technology, a full-service provider of customized solutions and user-friendly technology that supports today's "intelligent home." Founded in 2000, the company maintains partnerships with leading residential developers and interior designers to offer their new homebuyers such options as whole-house Internet connectivity, computer networking, home theater and audio systems, home automation, structured wiring, sophisticated lighting and cutting-edge home security systems. My Home Technology employs a staff of 22 with offices at 11300 Sorrento Valley Road, Suite 255 San Diego, CA 92121 and also in Houston. More information about the company is available at www.myhometechnology.com .