Computer Column.(Column)

Byline: Craig Crossman

Oct. 31--While my column is primarily about computers, it's also about technology and every once in a while, something really amazing crosses my path and I feel compelled to tell you about it. For the past few days, I've been using a magnetic induction cooktop and I have seen the future of cooking.

I remember as a small child when my parents were introduced to microwave cooking. There was great excitement in the Crossman family when in 1967 we bought our very own Radar Range. It was the first consumer microwave oven and it was made by Amana. Amana didn't call it a microwave oven in hopes that the Radar Range brand name would catch on but of course it didn't.

My folks were so excited about it that they invited many of their friends over to our home and literally threw a big party around the thing. I remember my father proudly rolling the Radar Range out on one of those little portable bar tables followed by a small procession of foods to be nuked.

My dad began the whole thing by slicing a peach in half, removing the pit, adding a teaspoon of brandy to its center, some brown sugar and then he popped it in. Everyone oohed and aahed as the delicious treat came out piping hot in under 60 seconds. We thrilled to a potato being baked in under four minutes. The grand finale was when on an impulse, he put in a marshmallow all by itself. Everyone watched as it and their eyes swelled up to the size of a cantaloupe. Those were the heady days of microwave cooking.

Until then, cooking in the modern home was done using appliances that incorporated either electrical heating elements or gas flames. Microwave technology introduced a whole new alternative to conventional cooking. Today, magnetic induction technology once again takes another similar leap forward over those conventional cooking methods.

There are two key things about magnetic induction cooking. It has the ability to produce heat instantly, and you can control that heat with a great deal of precision. While a gas flame is instantly hot, the pan in which your food sits still takes some time to heat up before things begin to sizzle. And forget about how long a conventional electric range element takes to first heat up let alone the pan that sits on it.