If Barbara Tuchman claimed that Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill. No one would disagree with her famous quote. However, besides being a medium of conveying knowledge, books can be cumbersome and can take large amounts of time in finding information. The virtual effects of science have caused a breakthrough making the store houses of information right in front of our computer screen as opposed to a newspaper where news may be shortened for the sake of space.

The new generation has the power of online portals which provide information with a mere click. No magic, no drama just news served like a hot cup of coffee to revitalize your senses. It wasn't that long after the Web first appeared that the first portals came into existence. Portals served and continue to serve as a important launch point for Web surfing, and although there are some special-interest portals out there that get some market share, the ones that started out early are the ones that get the lion's share of viewership.

The magical online portals have given the world of knowledge to mans finger tip. It covers all aspects from news, headlines, sports, entertainment, living, online shopping, articles, current events, current events, news updates.

But the portals of old were plain compared to what they are today, and what they will become in the next few years. Already a far cry from the plain, static first generation of portals, today's Web portals take advantage of new technology to create a much more exciting surfing experience. The driving force behind all this is the pervasiveness of broadband, which allows portals to hold more rich graphics and multimedia, colorful and fun animation, and functional applets such as stock market tickers and news feeds.

EMarketer's report highlights the future of the portal in this light, noting that portal services will go even beyond the Web itself, into the areas of personalized desktops, and video/multimedia search. And of course, portals make their money chiefly through advertising, and eMarketer makes note of the fact that the type of advertising found on portals is also changing.

The biggest changes in the future of portal services will be its expansion beyond traditional search, something we're already seeing with Google's branching out into other areas. Look for all major portals to launch desktop search products, personalized search tools, and even mobile search services in the coming years.

Private portals are also gaining in popularity as a convenient way to allow employees, clients, and customers to securely access personalized information via a password-protected portal site. Healthcare portals have become a extremely useful addition to large HR organizations, which save time and money by allowing employees to log into their own healthcare accounts--relieving HR staff from having to spend time on low-priority, standard requests for information. While the IT staff may be well-equipped to handle the technical end of the portal, leaving the project entirely in their hands (and not seeking participation from other areas) is likely to result in a portal that is not aligned with the true business needs of the company. The portal must be a priority not just of IT, but of the entire company. Online portals are the new generation information provider , and yes, if Late Barbara Tuchman was alive, she would have had a different quote altogether, what say ?