The official origin legend of Steve Wozniak's newest company, Wheels of Zeus, will hold that its core invention grew out of Wozniak's attempt to keep track of his dogs after too many electronic fences had failed to do their job.

"I had a few periods of shock," he explains, "of finding that somebody had found my dog along the way. But what really intrigued me was the idea that this was doable technically." The legendary inventor is referring to his latest idea: putting Global Positioning System technology to work around the home. GPS and radio chips had become so inexpensive, Wozniak says, that they were crying out for new uses. "I had enjoyable thoughts," he says, "about a product category that hadn't occurred to me before."