Two things to take a look at:Microsoft has started to promote the .NET Micro Framework. This really is interesting, and hardware is "on the horizon". Here is a starting link: http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/embedded/bb267253.aspx I am going to get some hardware to work with, sooner than later, I hope.
There are a series of videos called "Engineering TV" that are quite interesting:
http://engineeringtv.com/blogs/etv/archive/2007/01/30/episode-8-the-black-diamond-switchback-pc.aspx Dick Richard Grier (Microsoft MVP - Visual Basic) Hard & Software 12962 West Louisiana Avenue Lakewood, CO 80228 303-986-2179 (voice) 303-593-9315 (fax) Homepage: www.hardandsoftware.netAuthor of Visual Basic Programmer's Guide to Serial Communications, 4th Edition ISBN 1-890422-28-2 (391 pages) published July 2004, Revised July 2006.