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The law just makes it so that a single industry standard must be followed. Changing this standard is fairly easy, it just requires the European Commission to am

The law just makes it so that a single industry standard must be followed. Changing this standard is fairly easy, it just requires the European Commission to amend it. This means that if there's a better connector, USB-IF (being made up out of most of the people actually designing the hardware using it) can just release a new standard and get it approved. Edit: It's actually the Commission, not parliament that's allowed to change standards.

logicalmonster 4y ago
> This means that if there's a better connector, What if there's more than 1 design in progress for a better cable and connector with competing tradeoffs? Designing stuff means picking the right tradeoffs. For instance, you could probably design a phone that is close to indestructible and has a battery that lasts for a month if you made it as big as a brick, but obviously nobody wants that. For cable connectors, there's all kinds of subtle tradeoffs that could be taken into account: data transfer speed, electricity transfer, size and weight of cable, how easy it is to connect and how secure it is when connected, its role in waterproofing, stability in heat and challenging environments, security, etc. Are you really comfortable with some parliamentary committee vote picking between the right design tradeoffs? And what if there's a connector that's slightly better than the existing one today, but you know that something that's clearly much better is ready in about 1-3 years? Can a parliament have the judgement needed to make the right engineering decision in the face of loads of political pressures? Their choice has to be right because no market alternative would exist. Do you genuinely feel comfortable with this? I sure don't.
- ragazzina 4y ago
  >For cable connectors, there's all kinds of subtle tradeoffs that could be taken into account: data transfer speed, electricity transfer, size and weight of cable, how easy it is to connect and how secure it is when connected, its role in waterproofing, stability in heat and challenging environments, security, etc. >Are you really comfortable with some parliamentary committee vote picking between the right design tradeoffs? Are you comfortable with the USB-IF picking between the right design tradeoffs?
lvass 4y ago
Words of Comission spokesperson, 2060: We're fully aware of Deukhoofd's words and even though they aren't in the letter of law, we're still working hard on approving a better connector. Unfortunately as all things in life, there are tradeoffs with every single change, so we're planning to come up with a new definition of the term "better connector" in the next 10 years. Stay tuned in our hard work and don't forget to vote on us if you want to see this finished.
- Deukhoofd 4y ago
  > even though they aren't in the letter of law. > With respect to radio equipment capable of being recharged via wired charging, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 44 to amend Part I of Annex Ia in the light of technical progress or market developments, and to ensure the minimum common interoperability between radio equipment and their charging devices, by: (a) modifying, adding or removing categories or classes of radio equipment; (b) modifying, adding or removing technical specifications, including references and descriptions, in relation to the charging receptacle(s) and charging communication protocol(s), for each category or class of radio equipment concerned.’
pembrook 4y ago
> Changing this standard is fairly easy, it just requires the European Commission to amend it. Is this sentence intended to be sarcastic? I can imagine nothing more draconian and backwards than having to lobby a political organization for permission to do something innovative and outside the norm.
- Deukhoofd 4y ago
  > something innovative and outside the norm. They are explicitly trying to avoid this, where everyone has their own "innovative" proprietary charger. It is fairly easy for an organization such as USB-IF to put it forward to the commission when they have a new standard, considering it means that the industry has already decided on the new standard. If a new cable is improvement enough that it warrants a new standard, I don't doubt that the industry as a whole will try and make a push for it.

logicalmonster 4y ago

> This means that if there's a better connector, What if there's more than 1 design in progress for a better cable and connector with competing tradeoffs? Designing stuff means picking the right tradeoffs. For instance, you could probably design a phone that is close to indestructible and has a battery that lasts for a month if you made it as big as a brick, but obviously nobody wants that. For cable connectors, there's all kinds of subtle tradeoffs that could be taken into account: data transfer speed, electricity transfer, size and weight of cable, how easy it is to connect and how secure it is when connected, its role in waterproofing, stability in heat and challenging environments, security, etc. Are you really comfortable with some parliamentary committee vote picking between the right design tradeoffs? And what if there's a connector that's slightly better than the existing one today, but you know that something that's clearly much better is ready in about 1-3 years? Can a parliament have the judgement needed to make the right engineering decision in the face of loads of political pressures? Their choice has to be right because no market alternative would exist. Do you genuinely feel comfortable with this? I sure don't.

ragazzina 4y ago
>For cable connectors, there's all kinds of subtle tradeoffs that could be taken into account: data transfer speed, electricity transfer, size and weight of cable, how easy it is to connect and how secure it is when connected, its role in waterproofing, stability in heat and challenging environments, security, etc. >Are you really comfortable with some parliamentary committee vote picking between the right design tradeoffs? Are you comfortable with the USB-IF picking between the right design tradeoffs?

lvass 4y ago

Words of Comission spokesperson, 2060: We're fully aware of Deukhoofd's words and even though they aren't in the letter of law, we're still working hard on approving a better connector. Unfortunately as all things in life, there are tradeoffs with every single change, so we're planning to come up with a new definition of the term "better connector" in the next 10 years. Stay tuned in our hard work and don't forget to vote on us if you want to see this finished.

Deukhoofd 4y ago
> even though they aren't in the letter of law. > With respect to radio equipment capable of being recharged via wired charging, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 44 to amend Part I of Annex Ia in the light of technical progress or market developments, and to ensure the minimum common interoperability between radio equipment and their charging devices, by: (a) modifying, adding or removing categories or classes of radio equipment; (b) modifying, adding or removing technical specifications, including references and descriptions, in relation to the charging receptacle(s) and charging communication protocol(s), for each category or class of radio equipment concerned.’

pembrook 4y ago

> Changing this standard is fairly easy, it just requires the European Commission to amend it. Is this sentence intended to be sarcastic? I can imagine nothing more draconian and backwards than having to lobby a political organization for permission to do something innovative and outside the norm.

Deukhoofd 4y ago
> something innovative and outside the norm. They are explicitly trying to avoid this, where everyone has their own "innovative" proprietary charger. It is fairly easy for an organization such as USB-IF to put it forward to the commission when they have a new standard, considering it means that the industry has already decided on the new standard. If a new cable is improvement enough that it warrants a new standard, I don't doubt that the industry as a whole will try and make a push for it.