Networking For Overconvenience 116
Roland Piquepaille writes "For several decades now, we've read that our homes will become smart and that we'll have many robotic slaves at our service. But it's never really worked. A recent European initiative called TEAHA (short for 'The European Application Home Alliance') wants to give another try, and it has enrolled some big industrial partners to make all our appliances interoperate seamlessly. Imagine a message on your TV telling you it's time to start the laundry! Read more for additional details and illustrations describing the concepts."
Re:Consider the other side too... (Score:2, Informative)
What sources for your statistic about mental health? (it's not that I disagree, I don't know anything about this subject, it's only that I find this astonishing)
JP
Re:Rolan fuckhead (Score:3, Informative)
http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/5738 [userscripts.org]
No more roland piquipaki! Thanks to Brendan Donahue, script author.
Re:Consider the other side too... (Score:3, Informative)
Nobody knew that these cellphones, together with similar technology would contribute to the increase in our stress levels.
It does seem that the tech making everybody more productive just increased expectations on productivity, and thus increased stress. I'm not sure there's any way around it though, without getting less done. Of course, some people just choose to get less done, earn less and have a less stressful life.
Do you know that the chances of a kid getting a brain disorder are just 1 in 166? It iused to be 1 in 11000 in the late sixties.
Common reasons for such increased statistics include better reporting, better diagnosis, and sometimes changing definitions of illness. Wading through these factors, then we can work out if the stat is still valid. Out of curiousity, got a ref for the study?
Re:internetworked.. or just more reliable/precise? (Score:4, Informative)
Apart from the digital input, these already exist. Companies like Grohe produce thermostatic faucets like these [groheamerica.com].
They typically have two knobs, one to set the temperature, and one to set the amount of water. I've been using these for years, and (provided you get a good one, and not a cheap-ass B-brand) they work perfectly. They're not exactly cheap (>$100), but worth it. Temperature control is to sub-1 degree C accuracy.
Technical PDF link. Trusted Computing Inside! (Score:4, Informative)
It specifies devices to contain security module / security component. It specifies that this security component contains a crypto key and that the owner is forbidden to know or read his own keys (that is what they mean when the PDF says "non cloneable"). It specifies using public key cryptography for chips to exchange communication keys in a manner secure against the owner, and specifies Confidentiality as establishing communication links which are secure against the owner "eavesdropping" on his own data. It specifies Authenticity capabilites, meaning that neither the owner nor any competitor can produce a device that can be substituted in your own network in place of a given device. Any attempt at an interoperable substitution will lack the required manufacturer's cryptographic key and signature to authenticate the device, and other devices can reject the substitute and reject its connections and prohibit it from operating in the original device's place.
Every time the PDF uses the word secure or security, it is used in the sense of securing the system against the owner. The PDF literally classifies the owner as an "intruder" at one point, and to be secure against him.
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