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How does it feel to enter a world where software is killing people ? Driven a new car lately ?

• fixermark 8y ago
  I'll be honest, I still prefer it to the world where lack of software kills people. ... I avoided running over that child I couldn't see in my rear-view because the infrared sensors picked him up as a mobile object intersecting my path and the backup warning screamed at me. I like not killing people, so I call that a win.
  • geggam 8y ago
    Have you had to fight your lane assist yet ? I am all for the sensors to give me information but when the systems take over control I am not a fan. Cyclists in the EU have learned that the car sensors will slam on the brakes. Quite irritating when the car slams on the brakes and they are laughing at you.
    • fixermark 8y ago
      Ah, see, I'm American. ;) The lane assist can be disabled and a cyclist who hard-brakes in front of me is taking their life in their hands because my Ford only stops if I touch the brake (it just stops as hard as it needs to to minimize risk of impact, regardless of how soft I push the pedal). (Sidebar: I almost feel like that cyclist game is something that should be solved with more sensors. If it's a common issue, you really want a dash cam to capture their image and report them to police, as inentionally hard-braking to trigger a car safety system is clearly endangering their lives and the lives of the car occupants, since the auto-brake is designed with a bias towards injuring occupants over killing anyone).
      • geggam 8y ago
        I am an American too, renting an Audi in Germany has caused me many learning experiences. Like take the 30 minutes to learn the computer system before you take off because attempting to turn things off at speed is interesting when you cant find it. Audi presense is nice, lane assist is nice, adaptive cruise control is nice etc etc but when its not nice it gives you whiplash or heart attacks And that ever pervasive feeling that you know somwehere is a bug in that code which could yank your steering wheel sideways or slam on the brakes randomly
      • penagwin 8y ago
        The cyclist issue is something I don't consider a fault of software or the car's design. Driving/Cycling/Walking in front of a high speed vehicle who has the right of way to the point that they need to break means you should not have been there to begin with. The car's only other option is to hit the cyclist, so as far as I'm concerned it's doing it job correctly. Like you mention a dashcam is likely the only remedy here. Thankfully they're cheap and pretty common...
        • deleted 8y ago
          [deleted]
        • bambax 8y ago
          I think the grandparent is talking about a situation where the cyclist is _behind_ the car and not in front of it. A modern car that brakes hard can decelerate much faster than a bike, and therefore becomes a brick wall. When I'm on a bicycle I try to avoid cars as much as possible (by being in a lane for bikes, or on the sidewalk) but sometimes we have to share the road. Then I'd rather ride opposite to traffic because at least I see the cars incoming and can avoid them.
          • geggam 8y ago
            Yes, the rear. I didnt make that clear. When backing out the bikes can be 50 ft away coming fast and the car senses they will be close so it slams on the brakes way before anyone is in danger. Coffee spills etc
            • penagwin 8y ago
              Whoops my bad! I thought you meant they were purposely traveling in front of the car, knowing it's sensors would force it to stop. It'd be super moronic and dangerous, but if you recognized the car model it would at least be possible.
              • salawat 8y ago
                That's what I thought too.
      • salawat 8y ago
        No. No. No. So we need more software to solve problems created by software being exploited by people. I have a much simpler solution that doesn't involve taking away from someone's agency. A)look both ways before crossing B) Don't drive the piece of equipment distracted. The more sensors we put on cars, the more we lay the foundations for technologies that can handle will be used in tyrannical ways. No thanks.
• the_mitsuhiko 8y ago
  > How does it feel to enter a world where software is killing people ? How is this new? Software has been killing people for a long time.
  • geggam 8y ago
    Smaller groups, yes it has. Software is in everything now so you have to actively avoid it.
• penagwin 8y ago
  Software CAN be far more safe then humans for tons of reasons. It's a matter of procedure and testing to ensure it's actually safe. People are going to die, and that sucks. The hope is that we can use software to lower the death rate. In this case: How did they have a system that can override the pilot without A) Clearly identifying why it's overriding the pilot and B) allowing the pilot to quickly disable it if they wish. This could have been different, even ignoring how the MCAS didn't detect the strange readings. * MCAS detects dangerous angles, beeps and has a clear light to alert the pilot to the situation * Pilot understands there is no danger in stalling, disables MCAS * They can now ground the flight or continue to their destination without the plan sending them to the floor. Although based off what I've read about MCAS it only exists to fix a fundamental design flaw with how the 747 is certified, which is obviously an issue on it's own.