Has it really been 15 years since attendees to the inaugural Demo conference got their first glimpse of a multimedia PC? And in that time, the Demo show has been the launching pad for many well-known products, including the original Palm Pilot, Java, TiVo and E*Trade services. With that pedigree, my Network World colleagues who are organizing Demo@15 are prepping some hot new finds to spotlight at the upcoming show in February that will most likely become household names in the next few years.

Some 70 products are due to be unveiled at the show that's taking place Feb. 13-15 at the Westin Resort and Spa in Scottsdale, Ariz. To get a place on the agenda, the product developers have to undergo a tough screening process that's overseen by Executive Producer Chris Shipley. She ensures that marketing budgets are checked at the door in favor of nitty-gritty technological detail.

To celebrate 15 years of Demo, the conference program will also recognize those who have made a big impact in the industry over the past 15 years. The innovators who will be celebrated at a special dinner during the conference are:

* Teresa Meng, founder and director, Atheros Communications, whom the organizers say played "a primary role in creating the Wi-Fi economy."

* Kai Kruse, founder, Byte Research Lab, for advancing computer graphics.

* Howard Elias, executive vice president, EMC, who demonstrated the first multimedia PC at the first Demo conference in 1991.

* Sergey Brin and Larry Page, co-founders and presidents, Google, for "demonstrating that smart, fresh innovation can disrupt a market and create a dynamic and ultimately gigantic company."

* Les Vadasz, former president of Intel Capital, for providing rocket fuel for many fledgling companies that got their start at Demo.

* Marc Andreessen, chairman, Opsware, for his early browser product and rapid Web development services at Loudcloud.

* Ed Colligan, president, PalmOne; Jeff Hawkins, CTO, PalmOne; Donna Dubinsky, co-founder, Handspring. Demo organizers say: "There is no better 'poster child' for Demo than the Palm Pilot and we are proud of the role the conference played in bringing it to market."

* Mena and Ben Trott, co-founders, Six Apart, for making blogging accessible.

* Mike Ramsay, chairman and CEO, TiVo, for altering how we consume mass media.

Jon Brodkin is senior writer at Network World.