Slashdot Mirror
The Internet Of Things Is Becoming More Difficult To Escape (npr.org)
An anonymous reader writes: After a long day, many of us try to set down our technology and unplug from the world around us. But, according to a new report by the Pew Research Center and Elon University's Imagining the Internet Center, over the next few years, that will become much more difficult to do. The Internet of things will continue to spread between now and 2026, until human and machine connectivity becomes ubiquitous and unavoidably present, according to experts who participated in what Pew described as a "nonscientific canvassing." About 1,200 participants were asked: "As automobiles, medical devices, smart TVs, manufacturing equipment and other tools and infrastructure are networked, is it likely that attacks, hacks or ransomware concerns in the next decade will cause significant numbers of people to decide to disconnect, or will the trend toward greater connectivity of objects and people continue unabated?" The answers they gave were telling: 15 percent said significant numbers of people would disconnect while 85 percent said most people would just move more deeply into connected life. Unplugging is futile, and plugging in is unavoidable. It's already difficult to create distance from the technology that surrounds us, but as connectivity increases, it might become impossible to do so.
It's not 'unavoidable' in any way shape or form and this whole story is complete and utter BULLSHIT. You do not have to BUY ANY 'IoT' things AT ALL to start with, and you do not HAVE to use them, either.
> concerns in the next decade will cause significant numbers of people to decide to disconnect
Not in the next decade, but now.
30 years ago I wanted things like "networked thermostat or blinds or whatever", it was called domotic, it was on an intranet and it seems cool, but very expensive.
Now there is a lot of connected devices (some still $$$) but there is no way I want my devices on others people servers (clouds) with poor security and closed firmware.
And you know what, finally, we don't need IoT, I don't need my washer/dryer on the internet, I can close my blinds myself too.
"Science will win because it works." - Stephen Hawking
Why would you want to add all this complexity to your life, I just don't get it. Appliances are supposed to free up your time but if you go gonzo trying to optimize their use you will achieve exactly the opposite.
love is just extroverted narcissism
The internet of things is a mess. I really dislike that catchphrase too. I believe the idea of a physical connection to the internet being unavoidable is very much a logical fallacy.
I prefer things that do not loop in because I can control them better. When I buy them I own those products and that means I get to decide how to use them.
The moment I realized I would have to install an app to make my coffee maker work, was the same moment I bought a stainless microfilter and a french press and took that thing back to the store.
Throw out anything that loops in -- you don't need it! The ONLY reason they want to do that is to get you hooked. Either so you don't use someone else's coffee or so you don't use refilled ink. Whatever. Just put your money on good quality gear that is more analog and you'll be MUCH happier.
And the last place one should look for any kind of scientific discovery is through non-scientific canvassing. The opinions of the unwashed masses are popular ones, but that does in no means make them correct.
The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
This article focused on how people put up with risk to get what they want, their prime example was car accidents are accepted to because we love cars.
The problem is that the LOT usually is for the benefit of the COMPANY, not the owner. They find something that people want just a little bit and sell it based on that convenience. Take the silly "BUG MY HOUSE" products now being sold, that offer internet searches and music in exchange for letting companies place always on microphones in your home. Huge benefit to the corporations, hue invasion of your privacy, all in exchange for not having to take your phone out of your pocket and tap one button before making the request.
Yes, silly people buy these things. But people d not have to. Their advantage is minimal and I truly doubt it will ever achieve the ubiquity of cars, fridges, TVs, etc.
This is typical. In general IOT is not a huge innovation allowing new consumer things for a minor cost, instead it is a huge corporate benefit with a minor consumer benefit.
It's not revolutionizing our life, it is just revolutionizing corporate business.
As such, it will probably be similar to Premium cable channels, like HBO. Some people, but not all or even most, will buy these things. Many people will refuse.
excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
They're very often 'abnormally cheap' because they're subsidized to encourage adoption of lower-energy-usage lighting products. They did the same with CFL bulbs. Where I live (Sacramento valley), SMUD (local power company) often subsidizes things like that -- and not IoT lighting, either, by the way.
... these things had good security. It seems that you can't go a month without hearing about some IoT hack or another. It's bad enough when it's an IoT camera in a kid's toy (or nursery camera), but how long before somebody uses an IoT stove to start a house fire?
Mr. Hu is not a ninja.
...it is what it is connected to! I like the idea of devices all around me sending information to a central information hub that I can query and control. I don't like the idea of each device sending sensitive information to its 'true owner's web server' somewhere in the cloud where it can be mined, hacked, or outright stolen by an employee. I don't want all those companies able to disconnect me from my data just because I don't feel like paying some exorbitant monthly fee. There are a whole host of issues with the current IoT architecture. We need a completely different architecture where all MY devices send and receive data to/from MY central controller. I get to choose how the data is used and who I want to share it with.
I bought one of these awesome, super duper water coolers from NZXT. The Kraken X62
https://www.nzxt.com/products/kraken-x62
Pretty cool colors and what not. The control panel for it (CAM software) asks for a cloud login which then of course runs every time you login. There seemed to be a problem just after I got it where the settings for fan, pump, and colors would not save between restarts. It has a guest mode, but even that lost settings or would insist on loading with reduced functionality without the cloud login. Huge support thread ensued.
http://support.camwebapp.com/forums/252256-cam-bugs/suggestions/17316232-kraken-x62
You know it's getting bad when even a CPU cooler "requires" a cloud login to work properly.
What's increasingly difficult to stomach is festering evil pervading tech industry.
Used to be somewhat focused on creating better tools to get shit done.
Now it's basically marketing Trojan horses to the public. Massive firms engaged in intentionally psychologically engineering products to maximize technological addiction and pervasive cyber stalking leveraged against consumer to ensure not one extra cent is ever left on the table.
The reality has always been dwindling returns on connectivity. IoT goons are laughably unable to communicate a coherent value proposition. Just spraying Internet dust all over the place isn't going to make anyone's lives better except those few behind the scenes leveraging marketing terms and virtue signaling to justify further ownage of the user to say nothing of creating unnecessary vectors for compromise by governments and criminal organizations the world over.
The road to hell is the path of least resistance.
I don't know what CRI is but my LLC (looks like crap) index puts incandescent lighting at the top.
love is just extroverted narcissism
I guess you've never read the Consumer Reports magazine. For decades, Jeep has been among the very worst automobiles on the market. All the US made cars were poorly rated, especially Chrysler cars and less so GM cars. But Jeep was just awful.
Additionally, a motorcycle gang was just busted for exclusively stealing Jeeps. They were able to get key code info from a dealer and they discovered that it was easy to open the hood from outside and disable the alarm system.
Yes, avoid IoT crap while you can, but note that even the dinosaur Jeep is full of hackable stuff.
...omphaloskepsis often...