Some of the distraction I find in my "smart car" features are due to poor user experience--location of hard buttons, layouts on screen of information or touch buttons ,and quality of speech recognition. From the article:

Voice activated systems in newer radio systems would seem to offer an advantage over older car radios of keeping the drivers eyes on the road. (Indeed, tuning an older radio was used as a baseline task in these tests.) But according to Mehler, problems arise when the system needs clarification of what the driver wants

It's the clarification that is the problem, not that it is voice activated (i.e. user experience). I find this with Siri when I'm driving (using built-in blue tooth to integrate it like a "smart" car function) when trying to listen to or respond to a text using voice. Approximately 1 out of 5 times Siri misunderstands a word and I have to change the message. This pulls my attention from driving and I usually give up and wait for a light to try again.

This is just one example. In dash systems need more work on user experience.

You officially have me jealous! I forgot to mention I have a TRS CoCo and Apple IIgs too.

I also should mention a TI 99 4/A and Commodore SX64 is on my list of desired additions! I'm always soliciting donations of old computers from people I know. If they ever mention some old computer in the attic, I offer it a good home.

Someplace in a deep dark place with the rest of my college material there lives a picture. This thread makes me want to go dig around again! Probably sitting next to a banner saying "Commodore 128" made with Print Shop on a Citizen 120D and some really cool drawings I made on GEOS geoPaint.

I remember we named it MAXX but I cannot remember why anymore.

I have a soft place for the 8 bit machines and actually have a small collection: Osborne executive, Atari 800, Atari 400, Commodore 4+, several C64, C128, VIC20, and Apple II/IIe and a few more. Would love to find PET, MSX, and Sinclair machines.

We used the user port to drive a board with 5 volt relays that, in turn, were used to turn on and off the DC motors (re-purposed windshield wiper motors). For input, I used the joystick ports since BASIC 7 had features to react to button presses, etc. and all the I/O was essentially just switches. I could POKE on the gripper motor and have the system react when the gripper closed "fire button" was hit before turning it off.

Reading and reacting to the encoders required a machine language routing to keep up with the pulses. I think that lived in the cassette buffer but I'm fuzzy if this was the case. One final cool feature: I could use the joysticks to train the robot to move by recording it's actions and then replaying them (after trading out the joystick for the I/O plug). This was fairly amazing to most people in the late 80's.

I went from a Vic20 to C128 instead of a C64. I was amazed that I could use CPM and a very advanced basic. The power of this machine enabled me and a good friend to build a robot in college made of nothing but old car parts, DC motors, relays, and plates with holes drilled in them for encoders. That directly led to my first job as an automation engineer.

The C128 also was the last computer that fueled my dreams. I went to college to become a computer engineer so I could build what I called the "compatibility machine". This machine could execute all the major 8-bit computer software (they all had Z80's or 6502) without the user intervening or worrying what version of software they purchased. The C128 showed me it could be possible!

By the time I left school the writing was on the wall that Mac / IBM style PCs would rule the world. It didn't stop me from getting an Amiga, but it was pretty clear that CBM was on the way out.

Previous poster pointed out that this is true if sold as a medical device by an OEM. Medical device OEMs have a strict set of guidelines they need to follow for the creation of these devices--risk management, CAPA processes, demonstration that design outputs are tested against design inputs. (FDA 21 CFR Part 820, for example)

That being said, a hospital has a much less stringent set of requirements (though I believe there is much discussion in the FDA related to this). With the proper research agreements, IRB review (Institutional Review Board), and following proper research procedures (e.g. patient consent), a doctor can try new ideas, technology, or off-label use of existing device. However, Google would not be liable unless they want to sell a healthcare version.

There were many examples. Timex had a watch that would sync calendar and reminders which required you to point it at a IR transmitter (for laptops). I had one and the sync failed far too often. At least it looked like a nice sports watch.

Motorola had a wristwatch pager called the Mermaid that was a large device as well. I couldn't find a link except to another collaboration between Timex and Motorola. I think there were others.

The watch space feels like the early mp3 player market. Many people trying to crack the code for what consumers will jump on but nobody quite yet has a break out product in usability and features.

I typically use blocking software on most sites, but not all. What I find is the ads are always too late to be useful.

As an example, I was looking at AutoTrader for a used car. Found one I liked, went to dealer, and purchased it. Now, weeks later I still get ads for vehicles. No problem; maybe they assume people search longer for a car. I'll buy that. Purchased flowers for my fiance and the next day I'm getting ads for flowers. Yes, I love her but I'm not buying flowers everyday.

Basically what I'm trying to say is that the ads lag behind what I'm in the market for. They aren't predictive (maybe Google does better when scanning your email) and thus don't add much value if you're already done with the purchase. Facebook seems a bit better because they link them to topics people are discussing in posts. I like to post about cool guitar gear I find so an ad for a discount at Guitar Center might be useful. However, that is rare too.

BTW, don't like ads anymore than anyone else.

I cannot agree with you more. The post you responded to definitely has a narrow view of the world.

How about a sad story: A professional woman who ran a sales organization has a great career with good money and a husband who works as well. Nice home and is raising 6 children with good moral character even though one has a learning disability and another some anger management issues.

Fast forward 6 years: After two bouts with cancer and some chronic pain after surgery this woman is now on permanent disability. You know how much that pays a month? Not much. Husband and other men in her life are gone because men suck at living up to responsibility and she's stuck with no insurance, house is gone, and kids still need to eat. Thank god for government programs (which her taxes helped fund for years) so she might be able to afford food and medical care.

I am sure she's very sorry to be an undeserving leech, "welfare" mother in an otherwise perfect world the poster lives in.

How do I know all this? Well, she's my fiance and I'm looking forward to spending my life with her. Hey, that's good news...one less undeserving welfare mom for us to cover. You want to discuss fixing fraud, negative incentives for working, mismanagement of government programs, have at it, but let those deserving of some help out of it.

From the fine article:

So the beef is that Tesla isn't being clear about everything and that upsets the dealers. hmm..

In my local paper, the dealers have ads in every Sunday that advertise a low price. As it was a few weeks ago, I was looking to buy a minivan for the family (I'm not completely domesticate, I still have my convertible). Great price of $22k for a Town and Country...pretty amazing actually. Way at the bottom of the ad were the caveats--includes first car buyer discount, veteran discount, bonus trade-in amount, etc.

Looking at the discounts there was no way you could be eligible for all of them at the same time. In my case, none of them. Yeah, those Tesla guys are devious and misleading.

I saw an interesting show on how Russia is slowly dismantling the nuclear submarine fleet (Discovery's "Submarine: Hidden Hunters Collection"). They showed how a team of contractors and experts from former East Germany were helping decommission the fleet. There were over 200 nuclear power plants, with more still coming, sealed in part of the sub's pressure hull and being stored on cement slabs until the radioactivity had decreased enough for a later generation to tackle.

Failed super power or not, it does show how massive the military buildup between the Soviet Union and United States was during the Cold War. If the US is still sustaining that level of commitment (and number of subs as part of it), it would take quite some time for anyone (including China) to be in a position to completely wipe out our naval capability.

Just an opinion that let me mention a very interesting set of shows on subs. So yes, I had an ulterior motive to post!

When I read this in a story about UK, reminded me of the simple question. Have you tried turning it off and on?

I'm not sure I fully agree. If their product came damaged because of cheap packaging, the world would be up in arms about a $500+ device being damaged during shipping.

Also, Apple packaging is mostly just cardboard which is easy to recycle. Most of the other products I buy have packaging loaded with cardboard, Styrofoam (or press paper forms), plastic bags around everything, and plastic or wire cable ties. Apple has a screen protector, tiny plastic band around cables, and some cardboard.