3 ms·

Okay but people who aren't mechanics, but drive, still know how to do things like turn the car on, and understand that if they turn the steering wheel right, th

Okay but people who aren't mechanics, but drive, still know how to do things like turn the car on, and understand that if they turn the steering wheel right, the wheels point to the right. They understand that the car needs gas, even if they don't really know why it needs gas. People who don't know how to use computers treat them like a magic box that may or may not do what they want to, if they use the right magical incantation.

crooked-v 6y ago
> that may or may not do what they want to Computers inexplicably don't do what you want them to do all the time, though. Modern cars, by contrast, are incredibly reliable even with extremely insufficient maintenance.
- Delk 6y ago
  Cars are also much simpler tools than computers in terms of the variety of things people want to do with them. Car analogies applied to computing tend not to be very good, at least partially for that reason.
- mondoshawan 6y ago
  I beg to differ: my Mazda MX-5 has a lane departure warning system that flatly gets it wrong all the time. My prior car, a Scion iA, mis-triggered the "smart city breaking" on the freeway and nearly caused an accident. The infotainment system fails bluetooth connections inexplicably, and flatly refuses at accept CarPlay or Android Auto connections periodically. And I keep my cars clean and current with maintenance. Are these parts not part of the car?
  - AnonC 6y ago
    Aren’t some of those parts actually computers in the car that don’t work as expected?
filmgirlcw 6y ago
I think you’d be surprised just how much new car owners/drivers do not know about how to work a car. The number of people I’ve seen confused by how to fill a gas tank — let alone what type of gas to use, is massive. And it’ll only get worse as we move to electric and self-driving cars. And then there is the stuff that is often different car to car, like where lights are, how to adjust certain settings. Want to pair the Bluetooth in your Mercedes to your phone? I consider myself extremely proficient at computers and absolutely know how to use one in almost any capacity and even I’ve struggled with its lunacy (which is much more a reflection on Mercedes bad in-car systems that vary model year to model year and can differ based on what options your dealer ordered).
- stjohnswarts 6y ago
  Maybe in Oregon. Everywhere I've lived people haven't panicked over filling up their gas tank? As a matter of fact I've never encountered a single person ever wandering around the gas station parking lot asking other for help on filling their tank....
  - Geezus_42 6y ago
    I've met people who didn't know that cars need oil until they caught their engine on fire...
- FillardMillmore 6y ago
  Perhaps tangential - but what Mercedes models are you referring to? I've driven multiple recent Mercedes, A220, C300, CLA250, and have never had a real problem connecting the bluetooth on my phone. I believe all of these models have had a spin-dial media interface though - I can't stand touchscreen interfaces in cars - totally unintuitive and inconvenient while you're driving.

crooked-v 6y ago

> that may or may not do what they want to Computers inexplicably don't do what you want them to do all the time, though. Modern cars, by contrast, are incredibly reliable even with extremely insufficient maintenance.

Delk 6y ago
Cars are also much simpler tools than computers in terms of the variety of things people want to do with them. Car analogies applied to computing tend not to be very good, at least partially for that reason.
mondoshawan 6y ago
I beg to differ: my Mazda MX-5 has a lane departure warning system that flatly gets it wrong all the time. My prior car, a Scion iA, mis-triggered the "smart city breaking" on the freeway and nearly caused an accident. The infotainment system fails bluetooth connections inexplicably, and flatly refuses at accept CarPlay or Android Auto connections periodically. And I keep my cars clean and current with maintenance. Are these parts not part of the car?
- AnonC 6y ago
  Aren’t some of those parts actually computers in the car that don’t work as expected?

filmgirlcw 6y ago

I think you’d be surprised just how much new car owners/drivers do not know about how to work a car. The number of people I’ve seen confused by how to fill a gas tank — let alone what type of gas to use, is massive. And it’ll only get worse as we move to electric and self-driving cars. And then there is the stuff that is often different car to car, like where lights are, how to adjust certain settings. Want to pair the Bluetooth in your Mercedes to your phone? I consider myself extremely proficient at computers and absolutely know how to use one in almost any capacity and even I’ve struggled with its lunacy (which is much more a reflection on Mercedes bad in-car systems that vary model year to model year and can differ based on what options your dealer ordered).

stjohnswarts 6y ago
Maybe in Oregon. Everywhere I've lived people haven't panicked over filling up their gas tank? As a matter of fact I've never encountered a single person ever wandering around the gas station parking lot asking other for help on filling their tank....
- Geezus_42 6y ago
  I've met people who didn't know that cars need oil until they caught their engine on fire...
FillardMillmore 6y ago
Perhaps tangential - but what Mercedes models are you referring to? I've driven multiple recent Mercedes, A220, C300, CLA250, and have never had a real problem connecting the bluetooth on my phone. I believe all of these models have had a spin-dial media interface though - I can't stand touchscreen interfaces in cars - totally unintuitive and inconvenient while you're driving.