I am the editor for Transition2Agile.com and I would like to continue this dialog with you directly (if you are willing). Can you please email me? My email address is cliff AT Transition2Agile.com. My own personal focus has been the application of Agile in high assurance business environments - like banks - and your comments about banking software are really interesting to me. Thanks! Best regards - Cliff

The issue is that we are not requiring sufficient quality in software. Imagine where we are headed - the "Internet Of Things" (IOT). Programmed devices everywhere, all requiring updates constantly, all security risks, and of the hundreds of devices that you interact with every day, some percent don't do what they are supposed to do at any given moment. It adds up to a very frustrating day. I for one am not looking forward to it. If there are hundreds of programmed devices in our vicinity, 99% reliable is not enough - we need 99.999% - otherwise life will become shit.

Everything you buy today - especially things with software - will cause you grief - error codes, constant software updates, hacked, frozen and race conditions, and general frustration - so you have to ask yourself, is it worth it?

Pitiful to think that we could anticipate how this might go wrong.

I agree. Auctioning creates a "pay to play" system. Spectrum is a fixed resource - it should be allocated based on social policy - not based on who can pay the most. And when someone pays for it, they have every right to feel that they "own" it - and that undermines the government's ability to manage it: to adjust rules as situations change over time. Auctioning a fixed public resource is nothing less than prostitution of our public assets.

I can't wait: We will all be surrounded by a sea of devices, all beta quality - as is the norm today - such that every single day will involve struggle with 5% of the devices not doing what they are supposed to do; and all will require constant software updates; and all will have security vulnerabilities. Nice. Please count me out!

I guess we should stop learning to walk because we have cars now.

Oh wait - what happens when things change, like there is a war, or an economic depression - and the electric grid goes down - and we can't charge our laptops - or even buy one?

That's why these companies just keep on doing this.

Yes, tuning the radio is very distracting. In fact, cars that pop up alerts are very dangerous IMO. And the worst designs are those that have modal displays: e.g., when the radio shows either the time or the station and you have to toggle to see one or the other - that takes your eyes off the road. One thing is for sure: dialing a phone is _very_ distracting - as much as texting. I agree with you that talking on the phone is not a great idea in general. I am just not ready to completely eliminate it, because I think that sometimes it is a rational risk if one compensates by being extra careful. But again, people in general do not have the best judgment about these things, so perhaps it should be banned. I personally am really looking forward to driverless cars!

I am not like those people who talk on their phone all the time, including when they are picking up their kids. I am on my cellphone rarely, but when I do use it, it is really beneficial, and I am very careful. I tend to agree with you that many people are not so careful and they use it too much behind the wheel. In the morning I see so many people chatting on their phones while driving. I think that since their risky driving puts us all at risk, it might be better to limit cellphone use while driving, but it is a shame, because it penalizes those who are very careful.

So that is a judgment - an exercise of intelligence. You are making a judgment that turning the radio knob will not put you in danger. Presumably you do it at a moment when you have several car lengths in front of you. Also, have you ever arrived at a destination and then realized that you don't remember anything about driving there? Perhaps you were lost in thought the whole time...

My friend, are you saying that you don't listen to the radio while driving? And are you saying that you don't talk to other passengers while driving? Do you use a GPS system while driving?

Life is not about eliminating all risk. It is about managing risk in an intelligent manner. Driving is by itself very dangerous, so if we undertake the minimize risk, we should not drive at all. My point above was that it is very possible to intelligently and carefully use a cellphone and drive - just as it is possible to listen to the radio and drive safely. I am sure that studies would show that radios cause distraction as well. That is not saying that everyone will use a cellphone safely - on that I certainly agree!

And I would rather be a tiny bit distracted, at a safe moment when I make sure that I have plenty of car lengths in front of me, than be lost, wandering around trying to find my way. The maps application is one of the best driving innovations every. And Siri is fantastic, in that you don't have to fiddle with an address book on your car's console - you just say, "Call Joe". To me, it _enhances_ safety. And for those who think that I should not talk and drive, then remember the times that you were running late, and felt the need to rush, whereas by calling someone and saying you are a little bit late, you remove the pressure and you can slow down.

The FBI probably got surveillance data from the NSA, but cannot admit that, so they concocted another explanation, and the concocted explanation is falling apart.