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Wozniak Unveils WozNet
dki writes "Steve Wozniak's WozNet is covered in an article at the New York Times today. His company Wheels of Zeus, mentioned previously on Slashdot last year, plans to create wireless networks that use GPS to track clusters of electronic tags within a 1- or 2-mile radius of a base station. The tags "will be able to generate alerts, notifying the owner by phone or e-mail message when a child arrives at school, a dog leaves the yard or a car leaves the parking lot.""
Macworld UK says "WozNet is a lost cause"
Macworld has a pretty decent article
Cryptonomican bemoans the lack of information about security
Google has the goods
And there's even an article on Slashdot about it...
Last time I looked at it it was essentially a watch with both GPS and GSM (phone) built in so one could get the location of the watch at any time through their service. Sounds like a potentail DOS atack, though, if you obtain phone numbers or cell phone connection information (jamming signals, jamming GPS, etc)
Plus, since all the power is being used by the phone and GPS (chances are good the actual GPS processing is done elsewhere, like in the current E991 GPS services offered by phones) then it's unlikely that much encryption is being done at all.
-Adam
Kids will always find ways to outsmart their parents. It's called progress!
There's no place I can be, since I found Serenity.
As the proud parent of a 2.5 year old who has just learned how to steal her mom's keys and unlock the deadbolt on the front door so she can wonder off through the neighborhood without permission, I'd have to say that tracking devices are not such a bad idea. Especially since that deadbolt was installed after her slipping out twice, once to be found several blocks away, and once after playing in the neighbor's water feature in 45 degree weather. There are times when you REALLY want to know exactly where your kid is!
"Freedom means freedom for everybody" -- Dick Cheney
So what's stopping me from putting one on your car and knowing everywhere you go?
Or even worse, something like this which happened in my hometown.
Happiness is like peeing yourself. Everybody can see it but only you can feel its warmth.
Get one of of those cheap latches, mount it 12 inches from the TOP of the door. The kids can't figure out how to make stable tower high enough to reach the latch. Problem solved for about $1.50.
I have three small children^W escape artists and this stops them cold.
And no posts about how terrible a parent this person is, kids wait until you're in the bathroom to pull these stunts off.