Comment Re:I would have serious reservations... (Score 1) 632
Unfortunately, the person who finds this bug is quite likely to be able to report it.
Unfortunately, the person who finds this bug is quite likely to be UNABLE to report it.
Comment Re:I would have serious reservations... (Score 1) 632
I'll only consider such a technology if/when law enforcement has been exclusively using such devices for years and data on false negative/positives is available.
No sane cop is going to give anyone an automatic 1/3 second firing advantage voluntarily. If they are forced to carry these weapons, you can expect the rates of officer involved shootings to go way up. Either officers will break training and keep their fingers on the trigger when holding their weapon, or they'll try to make firing decisions 1/3 or more second sooner than they ought to.
Now, since I didn't RTFA, I don't know how the weapon reacts to a trigger pull, but if the trigger won't pull until the computer says ok you've just ruined any smooth pull of a trigger, turning a smooth pull into a pull/jerk action -- taking you off taget. Or the trigger will pull smoothly and the firing pin won't fire until the computer says ok. That leaves you holding a gun with a pulled trigger on target for 1/3 second or more waiting for the bang. And you're going to look pretty dead if your CPU fails and you're left standing with an otherwise functional gun pointing at a bad guy while you hope it actually fires.
Just in case I was lacking any clarity in my post: My point was to cause outrage about our LE needing 100% reliable, always ready for defense weapons - to which my response is "me too".
WRT the article, it doesn't really say how the tech works... trade secret or some such nonsense... BUT, I got the feeling when reading the article that the sensor is in a natural position which is NOT on the trigger. My guess would be along the right side of the frame below the slide - which is where I put my finger until I'm ready to engage the trigger. I'd expect some sort of grip safety which kept the gun in an engaged state once authorized until grip was lost on the gun.
And I STILL want nothing to do with interjecting software blocks into a purely mechanical process. Ask AT&T whether it's possible to have a catastrophic software bug regardless of how careful you are. Unfortunately, the person who finds this bug is quite likely to be able to report it.
Comment Re:I would have serious reservations... (Score 1) 632
what's the false negative rate and the response time?
From the article:
Once an authorized user places his or her finger on the scanner, which is located in a natural position on the gun's grip, it activates the gun's enabling mechanisms in about one-third of a second, he said.
I'll only consider such a technology if/when law enforcement has been exclusively using such devices for years and data on false negative/positives is available. If such technology is too burdensome for someone who KNOWS they're going into a situation where their weapon can mean the difference between life and death, it's too burdensome for me in defense of myself and family.
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