4 ms·
I don't think she should win this lawsuit but it does make me think google could add a new feature describing the safety level of a route.
by mburney 16y ago
I don't think she should win this lawsuit but it does make me think google could add a new feature describing the safety level of a route.
- epochwolf 16y agoThere is no safety issue here, it's a stupidity issue. She could have used the walkway I commented about instead she decided to walk on what is obviously a highway.
- melling 16y agoWhat's the most fair and effective way to stop these types of law suits? Perhaps these can be filtered through some other group of judges to determine if they have merit? Even lawyers realize the system is broken. http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/philip_howard.html http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/philip_howard.html
- smokinn 16y agoIn Canada there's a preliminary hearing of some sort (not sure about the specifics) to see if the case is even justified in being tried. The vast majority of stories like these are all thrown out.
- anamax 16y agoThere's a similar procedure in the US. Google used it to get Brian Reid's age-discrimination case thrown out. He appealed that decision and won so now he gets to go to trial.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- 27182818284 16y agoAt first I thought and typed, "Yeah, exactly. They could add a safety warning about the health effects of eating the phone or laptop you look at Google Maps on too, but we don't because there is an assumed level of intelligence. I hope that she doesn't just lose, but is also penalized for creating a frivolous suit." But then I reread the parent's post and now I think what they meant is that a nice feature would be one that displayed a route's level of safety. For example, if the route makes you cross a busy highway it might get a red label while a route that crosses no roads would get a green label.
- mburney 16y agoExactly, that is the kind of feature I am suggesting. After all, good software often compensates for errors made by the user.
- epochwolf 16y agoI'm torn. I don't know if you saw the stop sign article but the more signage you put on something, the dumber people act. On the surface it's not a bad idea but then what happens if it's not accurate? Some of the streets in my city (Green Bay, WI) are safe most hours of the day and then you need to avoid them between 4pm and 5pm if you value your life. It would be a nice feature but it might open them to actual liability for reporting inaccurate safety information.
- dkokelley 16y agoI was thinking that too. The more Google attempts to provide safety, the more they become vulnerable to civil actions. Who was it that said there would be no car accidents if we replaced airbags with spikes?
- wooster 16y agoA further refinement would be to take into account unsafe neighborhoods, the time of day, lighting, and crime rates along the path.
- Groxx 16y agoExcept that by creating such a metric, they'd be more likely to be sued for its incorrectness. Imagine what would happen if someone walking a "safe" route gets mugged.