Remember the days when the manual version of most cars was cheaper, and you paid a premium for the automatic?
How times have changed...
Manual cars are still cheaper in countries that aren't the US.
The problem is, in the US they artificially adjust the price of manual cars to be the same as automatics. In Australia if you buy a manual car like a Ford Focus, Toyota Camry or Renault Megane you pay $2000+ less compared to the automatic.
as far as fun to drive, a properly done DSG is plenty fun to drive =)
Dual Clutch (Automatic) Transmissions or DCT's (DGS is VW's brand name) are not fun to drive.
DCT is the new name for the old sequential manumatics used in cars for donkeys years.
A DCT car tries to replace fun with speed, for some people this works but for those of us who enjoy driving, it wears off quickly. After that you're left with an automatic that you dont have much control over.
The way your current ignition works is mostly electronic. when you turn the key, it sends an electronic signal to the starter motor. Replacing it with a button, switch, dial, IR sensor or little hole where you can stick you finger doesn't change the way it operates.
However your argument about the feel of it, I completely understand that and it's fair.
Do you honestly expect people to believe that mechanical linkages fail more than software?
Pull the other one mate.
Mechanical failures usually have big indicators before they happen. When gears are difficult to shift in a manual it's usually an indicator that the engine or transmission mounts need replacing. When software fails there usually is no indicator to the user before it happens.
You want to try "shift to neutral" first. That's what they teach in driver's ed, and it's the best general purpose answer.
This.
In an emergency situation with a stuck WOT (Wide Open Throttle) shift into Neutral and only ever turn off the engine as a last resort.
Shifting into neutral disengages the engine from the drivetrain, so the engine can rev it's guts out without affecting the movement of the car. Turning off the engine kills the power steering, brake boosters, ECS/TCS and so forth. So turning off the engine in an emergency is a bad idea.
The problem with the use of SMS for 2-factor auth is not that you have to pay for the messages (paying for incoming text messages is an artifact of the horridly broken pricing model for US cellphone service) but that SMS is unreliable (I have had instances of SMS messages not getting through, especially if my phone happens to be switching cells or entering a dead zone at the time) and also that with more people doing so much internet stuff on their cellphones, having the second authentication factor being the same device you are using to log into the web site makes things a lot less secure.
There are very few 2 factor systems you dont have to pay for in some way (none if we're including the cost of your time).
But I'm commenting to point out the irony that I as an Australian, could receive SMS alerts from my bank on my Australian SIM whilst roaming in the US for free. In the Philippines, you can send unlimited SMS's as long as you have 1 peso in credit (US$1 = 45 PHP or there about). The cost of SMS's are largely superficial.
Thus there's no "do-everything console" unless you count set-top Android devices such as OUYA or set-top PCs such as the forthcoming Steam Machines.
OUYA failed big time. In fact we've had consoles for nearly 40 years, and no open console has ever succeeded. So maybe, just maybe, that's not what people want. There's no big demand for an open console.
And lest anyone says that open phones have been successful. (Leaving aside the dubious claim to Android openness.) Android phones have been successful by being the cheap option. Not by being the open option. The mass market isn't like the niche that populates Slashdot. They neither know nor care about this concept of "openness" in software.
An open gaming platform has been around longer than consoles, in fact it's always been more dominant than consoles.
Its called PC gaming and its been extremely successful as it's survived where console manufacturers have come and gone.
We even have restrictions on free speech, even though the 1st Amendment says, "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech...". It seems to me that my right to free speech is being "abridged" in that there's an effective ban on death threats, yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater, etc. And yet, I don't really see people going on about the death of the Constitution with respect to this aspect. Of course, I happen to think that death threats should *not* be protected under free speech just as I think gun laws should, in some way, be reformed, but I suppose that's my opinion and all...
The thing is, free speech is not "you can say whatever you like" it's "the government cannot arrest you for saying things". To be more accurate, free speech is "the government cannot arrest you for criticising the government" and a lot of people dont understand this.
Free speech does not protect you from the consequences of your speech, it's not an open license to say whatever you want to whomever you want with no recourse. If I walk around with a sign that says "Gooks go home" should I be entirely surprised when someone punches or stabs me? Of course I shouldn't. Free speech does not protect you from the consequences from your actions and is not unlimited, nor should it be.
Yeah, but you will get way more "hot chicks" with the Tesla.
Its no Lambo.
A Tesla looks like a Hyundai i45 (which I admit, is pretty stylish for a Hyundai). A Tesla looks average by todays standards.
The problem Tesla owners have with chicks is they'll never pass the Kristin Scott Thomas test. You pull up to Kristin Scott Thomas' house for your date with your Tesla and she doesn't notice anything about your car. So a Tesla owner immediately starts talking about the technology, how quite it is, range, MPG calculations and before he's even finished explaining how advanced the engine is, Kristin has popped back inside the house and locked the doors.
Take Europe, for example. You can call the drivers there "crazy" because they run red lights, lane markings are a suggestion (you can easily fit 4 lanes of traffic in a marked 2-lane road), park practically anywhere and everywhere,
Point in short, GP has never been to Europe, let alone driven there.
Breaking the law in Germany is inconceivable to Germans and will get a swift response from the AutobahnPolizei. The British dont tolerate people doing stupid things either, the Met will pull you over just to check if you've got the right permits and have paid congestion tax. Even the French will send the gendarme after you for doing the things that the GP suggested. Western Europe, Germany in particular are wonderful places to drive precisely because everyone follows the rules. People are for the most part predictable and polite, because of this predictability and lack of motorist masochism traffic flows much better... as for finding somewhere to park in Euro cities and town... Good Fucking Luck, you've clearly never been there.
Crossing the road when the "no cross" sign is on in Germany will get you death stares from Germans.
I've driven in the UK, Sweden and Germany as well as the US and Australia. The Europeans are far better drivers than we Australians because they follow the rules and thus are predictable drivers... however US drivers make the worst Australian drivers look good. However one of the big problems in the US (that's also growing in Australia) is the fact everyone drives automatics. These are much slower than manuals and breed more complacent drivers.
Right, because I'm sure the engineers at Toyota haven't thought about this kind of stuff.
They build stuff they have no intention of producing all the time, they can still afford shit like that because people still want their cars.
It's called Research and Development.
Things like VTEC didn't pop into your Honda overnight, the technology was developed over decades until it became good and cheap enough to be put into everyday use.
Apples iOS ecosystem seems pretty secure, a big part of that is app review/rejection.
Which is why no IOS device has ever been Hacked, erm sorry, I mean Jailbroken.
I'm pretty suspect of these figures, I have no doubt Android is higher due to mainly higher market share and number of devices but also due to the freedom of the Android operating system making it easier for malware writers to hide malware in dodgy app stores (Personally, I'll keep the freedom and take the risk as the risk is so low it's almost funny).
I'm also pretty suspect about the numbers as I'm sure if there was significant levels of malware on IOS Apple wouldn't be nearly as forthcoming as Google. Also things that are considered Malware on Google are permitted by the Itunes Store T&C (spyware). It's better to say that 97% of _known_ malware is targeting Android and that is a good thing(TM). Nothing is worse for security than ignoring threats.
The biggest security threat is a problem on any platform however, phishing and social engineering attacks. Anywhere where there are people, there will be phishers.
Try a 2013 Nexus 7? WRT software, I find it very odd that even today iOS doesn't support multiple/restricted profiles. They're not that useful in a phone but make perfect sense on a tablet - I can "sandbox" the tablet for my daughter to be kid-friendly (and deny access to a browser, for now).
No point in trying to talk sense to him. He's a died in the wool fanboy (you see SuperKendall on all of these threads trying to find any reason, no matter how vauge or far reaching to try and disprove anything slightly critical of Apple).
I highly doubt he's used an Android tablet in his life. Basically he has to recycle any old myth no matter how many times it's been disproved.
But that aside most Ipad users who've tried my Nexus 7 (2013) have commented that it's faster than an Ipad, even those who are fanboys have been begrudgingly forced to admit it's a great tablet. Software, well seeing as you use your browser for everything these days it doesn't matter but the quality of software on Android these days matches or superceeds that of Apple.
People will choose what they like, but some people like our friend Mr SuperKendall cant accept that.
Me, I like my Nexus 7 but I'd rather sell it to others on the good points of having one, rather than the bad points of the competition.
Sheriffs around here (FL) use the 800mhz public safety allocation (digital trunking/w encryption in their case - which requires a good signal to function), and a cell jammer would need to smash that range as well because some networks use frequencies around 800mhz or 850mhz.
This highlights why jammers are such a bad thing. The spectrum is crowded, and what might be perceived as useless by someone with a jammer might be neighbored by something important.
A lot of jammers will do the 800-900 MHz spectrum as they're used in other countries (UTMS band 5 = 800 MHz, band 6 = 850 MHz).
With your sig, I am really surprised that you take this position. Long before Dunning and Kruger wrote their famous paper it was well known that nearly everybody overestimates their skill in driving (c.f George Carlin on "idiots" and "assholes"). Have you considered that maybe you don't drive as well as you think you do when you are talking on the phone?
No he hasn't, nor will he.
The crux of Dunning-Kruger effect is not that they are unskilled, rather that they are completely oblivious to how unskilled they are and we've known about it for far longer than Carlin, Bertrand Russell said in the 30's "The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt" and I'm sure there will be earlier examples. Dunning and Kruger wrapped some science around it however.
I'm one of the 4% of humans who can multitask, I dont use my phone whilst driving because I know how badly it affects my driving. Even though I can do two things at once, it still does force me to divide my attention and with the number of idiots on the road, I dont want my attention taken up by something else. Most people who think they can use their phone whilst driving are not driving properly, they think it's easy because they dont bother with things like signalling, checking mirrors and blind spots as well as vehicle management (keeping an eye on speed and other gauges).
" - A passenger is able to spot and point out driving hazards
- A passenger is another set of eyes
- A passenger is able to recognize when traffic is challenging and stop talking."
I guess we'll have to ban blind people from traveling in cars then.
A blind person can still hear. Further more, when you stop talking because you're concentrating he wont start yelling "Frank, Frank, are you still there, speak up if you're still there Frank, Frank, Frank... Must of gotten cut off" and then immediately try to call you back.
No, you have to read carefully. He said per calorie.
I dare you to replace 200g of steak with 1.5 KG of broccoli in your daily diet.
I double dare you.
Sure it may contain more protein per calorie, but you have to eat a lot more to get your required intake (63g per day for a 75 KG adult male). Even at 1.5 KG of broccoli, you're still not getting enough protein. Meat remains the best way to get protein in your diet, if humans hadn't of started eating meat long ago, we'd still be living in trees.
Have you ever traveled to a Third World country with a group of Westerners? My experience is that your group will likely be a full head taller and noticeably more muscular than the the locals. Yes, our diet is better than people in the past had available to them, that doesn't make it wrong.
Never been to Africa I take it.
I have, as as well as Asia and the Americas. You have no idea what you're on about.
People in places like Asia or the Caribean are shorter not because of the lack of food (which is a lie, most countries have plenty of food, it's medicine, education and other essential services they lack) but because they've evolved to be shorter.
Africa, which has the most famine affected areas tends to have the tallest people.
Now most westerners will be fatter than most people in 3rd world countries.
But seriously, people who live in the poorest areas of the Philippines, Myanmar or the Dominican Republic have enough food. Education, no, food, yes and definitely eat a healthier diet than the overwhelming majority of westerners. These people lack good education, decent housing, a good standard of medical care, stable government and a whole bunch of amenities that we lack, but they aren't hurting for food. The poorest people will be eating food that is grown locally, even those in large towns or cities will be eating food from fresh markets rather than boxed food from supermarkets.
Wow, classic.
Excuse making to avoid the real issue. You are vain and strive to so things you think other will think you are special and different.
How often are you at 200 meter below the surface of the ocean? and wearing anon specialty diving watch? I would bet...never.
This.
How often will the average person require their watch to be shockproof or dive to 50m, let alone 200m.
In the end, all the average smart watch will need to do is withstand being dropped onto a concrete floor and not die if it gets splashed with water. Not onerous requirements.
But ordinary watches are going to be around for some time, some people will simply prefer them.
I don't want my car to be smart. Instead, make drivers licenses much more difficult to obtain.
This wont help.
You'll just end up with more people driving without a license.
Beyond that, you've got all the people who cant drive who currently hold license. I know its popular to blame everything on those darn kids, but the fact remains people who got their licenses 20 or more years ago weren't tested to the same standards and almost never kept their skills up to date. The 25+ group will be causing the majority of the accidents on the road.
What you need to do, is make it harder to keep your license. Only proper law enforcement on the road will reduce accident rates in the short to mid term. Proper driving training (note: training, not testing) will reduce it in the long term. Of course this means US drivers will need to give up their entitlement mentality (to be fair, Australian drivers aren't much different) and follow the road rules.
A cyclist should never try to merge into traffic for their own safety.
And if you cant ride in the bike lane for any reason or in traffic without obstructing other road users, its time to get off and walk. Unreasonable obstruction of traffic is illegal in my country and should be in any civilised nation.
Slashdot Mirror
Remember the days when the manual version of most cars was cheaper, and you paid a premium for the automatic?
How times have changed...
Manual cars are still cheaper in countries that aren't the US.
The problem is, in the US they artificially adjust the price of manual cars to be the same as automatics. In Australia if you buy a manual car like a Ford Focus, Toyota Camry or Renault Megane you pay $2000+ less compared to the automatic.
Dual Clutch (Automatic) Transmissions or DCT's (DGS is VW's brand name) are not fun to drive.
DCT is the new name for the old sequential manumatics used in cars for donkeys years.
A DCT car tries to replace fun with speed, for some people this works but for those of us who enjoy driving, it wears off quickly. After that you're left with an automatic that you dont have much control over.
The way your current ignition works is mostly electronic. when you turn the key, it sends an electronic signal to the starter motor. Replacing it with a button, switch, dial, IR sensor or little hole where you can stick you finger doesn't change the way it operates.
However your argument about the feel of it, I completely understand that and it's fair.
Do you honestly expect people to believe that mechanical linkages fail more than software?
Pull the other one mate.
Mechanical failures usually have big indicators before they happen. When gears are difficult to shift in a manual it's usually an indicator that the engine or transmission mounts need replacing. When software fails there usually is no indicator to the user before it happens.
This.
In an emergency situation with a stuck WOT (Wide Open Throttle) shift into Neutral and only ever turn off the engine as a last resort.
Shifting into neutral disengages the engine from the drivetrain, so the engine can rev it's guts out without affecting the movement of the car. Turning off the engine kills the power steering, brake boosters, ECS/TCS and so forth. So turning off the engine in an emergency is a bad idea.
The problem with the use of SMS for 2-factor auth is not that you have to pay for the messages (paying for incoming text messages is an artifact of the horridly broken pricing model for US cellphone service) but that SMS is unreliable (I have had instances of SMS messages not getting through, especially if my phone happens to be switching cells or entering a dead zone at the time) and also that with more people doing so much internet stuff on their cellphones, having the second authentication factor being the same device you are using to log into the web site makes things a lot less secure.
There are very few 2 factor systems you dont have to pay for in some way (none if we're including the cost of your time).
But I'm commenting to point out the irony that I as an Australian, could receive SMS alerts from my bank on my Australian SIM whilst roaming in the US for free. In the Philippines, you can send unlimited SMS's as long as you have 1 peso in credit (US$1 = 45 PHP or there about). The cost of SMS's are largely superficial.
Thus there's no "do-everything console" unless you count set-top Android devices such as OUYA or set-top PCs such as the forthcoming Steam Machines.
OUYA failed big time. In fact we've had consoles for nearly 40 years, and no open console has ever succeeded. So maybe, just maybe, that's not what people want. There's no big demand for an open console.
And lest anyone says that open phones have been successful. (Leaving aside the dubious claim to Android openness.) Android phones have been successful by being the cheap option. Not by being the open option. The mass market isn't like the niche that populates Slashdot. They neither know nor care about this concept of "openness" in software.
An open gaming platform has been around longer than consoles, in fact it's always been more dominant than consoles.
Its called PC gaming and its been extremely successful as it's survived where console manufacturers have come and gone.
Well said.
...abridging the freedom of speech...". It seems to me that my right to free speech is being "abridged" in that there's an effective ban on death threats, yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater, etc. And yet, I don't really see people going on about the death of the Constitution with respect to this aspect. Of course, I happen to think that death threats should *not* be protected under free speech just as I think gun laws should, in some way, be reformed, but I suppose that's my opinion and all...
We even have restrictions on free speech, even though the 1st Amendment says, "Congress shall make no law
The thing is, free speech is not "you can say whatever you like" it's "the government cannot arrest you for saying things". To be more accurate, free speech is "the government cannot arrest you for criticising the government" and a lot of people dont understand this.
Free speech does not protect you from the consequences of your speech, it's not an open license to say whatever you want to whomever you want with no recourse. If I walk around with a sign that says "Gooks go home" should I be entirely surprised when someone punches or stabs me? Of course I shouldn't. Free speech does not protect you from the consequences from your actions and is not unlimited, nor should it be.
And the crazies that come out in defence of unrestricted firearm ownership are proving them right.
And it's a looker.
And it's a VW.
That means range is irrelevant because something will have broken before the batteries are empty.
Yeah, but you will get way more "hot chicks" with the Tesla.
Its no Lambo.
A Tesla looks like a Hyundai i45 (which I admit, is pretty stylish for a Hyundai). A Tesla looks average by todays standards.
The problem Tesla owners have with chicks is they'll never pass the Kristin Scott Thomas test. You pull up to Kristin Scott Thomas' house for your date with your Tesla and she doesn't notice anything about your car. So a Tesla owner immediately starts talking about the technology, how quite it is, range, MPG calculations and before he's even finished explaining how advanced the engine is, Kristin has popped back inside the house and locked the doors.
Point in short, GP has never been to Europe, let alone driven there.
Breaking the law in Germany is inconceivable to Germans and will get a swift response from the AutobahnPolizei. The British dont tolerate people doing stupid things either, the Met will pull you over just to check if you've got the right permits and have paid congestion tax. Even the French will send the gendarme after you for doing the things that the GP suggested. Western Europe, Germany in particular are wonderful places to drive precisely because everyone follows the rules. People are for the most part predictable and polite, because of this predictability and lack of motorist masochism traffic flows much better... as for finding somewhere to park in Euro cities and town... Good Fucking Luck, you've clearly never been there.
Crossing the road when the "no cross" sign is on in Germany will get you death stares from Germans.
I've driven in the UK, Sweden and Germany as well as the US and Australia. The Europeans are far better drivers than we Australians because they follow the rules and thus are predictable drivers... however US drivers make the worst Australian drivers look good. However one of the big problems in the US (that's also growing in Australia) is the fact everyone drives automatics. These are much slower than manuals and breed more complacent drivers.
Right, because I'm sure the engineers at Toyota haven't thought about this kind of stuff.
They build stuff they have no intention of producing all the time, they can still afford shit like that because people still want their cars.
It's called Research and Development.
Things like VTEC didn't pop into your Honda overnight, the technology was developed over decades until it became good and cheap enough to be put into everyday use.
Which is why no IOS device has ever been Hacked, erm sorry, I mean Jailbroken.
I'm pretty suspect of these figures, I have no doubt Android is higher due to mainly higher market share and number of devices but also due to the freedom of the Android operating system making it easier for malware writers to hide malware in dodgy app stores (Personally, I'll keep the freedom and take the risk as the risk is so low it's almost funny).
I'm also pretty suspect about the numbers as I'm sure if there was significant levels of malware on IOS Apple wouldn't be nearly as forthcoming as Google. Also things that are considered Malware on Google are permitted by the Itunes Store T&C (spyware). It's better to say that 97% of _known_ malware is targeting Android and that is a good thing(TM). Nothing is worse for security than ignoring threats.
The biggest security threat is a problem on any platform however, phishing and social engineering attacks. Anywhere where there are people, there will be phishers.
I'm one of the 4% of humans who can multitask
Or, as Bertrand Russel pointed out, at least you think you are....
Actually I was tested for it at school like almost all Australians my age.
Who will watch the watchers?
WeightWatchers perhaps?
Try a 2013 Nexus 7? WRT software, I find it very odd that even today iOS doesn't support multiple/restricted profiles. They're not that useful in a phone but make perfect sense on a tablet - I can "sandbox" the tablet for my daughter to be kid-friendly (and deny access to a browser, for now).
No point in trying to talk sense to him. He's a died in the wool fanboy (you see SuperKendall on all of these threads trying to find any reason, no matter how vauge or far reaching to try and disprove anything slightly critical of Apple).
I highly doubt he's used an Android tablet in his life. Basically he has to recycle any old myth no matter how many times it's been disproved.
But that aside most Ipad users who've tried my Nexus 7 (2013) have commented that it's faster than an Ipad, even those who are fanboys have been begrudgingly forced to admit it's a great tablet. Software, well seeing as you use your browser for everything these days it doesn't matter but the quality of software on Android these days matches or superceeds that of Apple.
People will choose what they like, but some people like our friend Mr SuperKendall cant accept that.
Me, I like my Nexus 7 but I'd rather sell it to others on the good points of having one, rather than the bad points of the competition.
Sheriffs around here (FL) use the 800mhz public safety allocation (digital trunking /w encryption in their case - which requires a good signal to function), and a cell jammer would need to smash that range as well because some networks use frequencies around 800mhz or 850mhz.
This highlights why jammers are such a bad thing. The spectrum is crowded, and what might be perceived as useless by someone with a jammer might be neighbored by something important.
A lot of jammers will do the 800-900 MHz spectrum as they're used in other countries (UTMS band 5 = 800 MHz, band 6 = 850 MHz).
With your sig, I am really surprised that you take this position. Long before Dunning and Kruger wrote their famous paper it was well known that nearly everybody overestimates their skill in driving (c.f George Carlin on "idiots" and "assholes"). Have you considered that maybe you don't drive as well as you think you do when you are talking on the phone?
No he hasn't, nor will he.
The crux of Dunning-Kruger effect is not that they are unskilled, rather that they are completely oblivious to how unskilled they are and we've known about it for far longer than Carlin, Bertrand Russell said in the 30's "The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt" and I'm sure there will be earlier examples. Dunning and Kruger wrapped some science around it however.
I'm one of the 4% of humans who can multitask, I dont use my phone whilst driving because I know how badly it affects my driving. Even though I can do two things at once, it still does force me to divide my attention and with the number of idiots on the road, I dont want my attention taken up by something else. Most people who think they can use their phone whilst driving are not driving properly, they think it's easy because they dont bother with things like signalling, checking mirrors and blind spots as well as vehicle management (keeping an eye on speed and other gauges).
" - A passenger is able to spot and point out driving hazards
- A passenger is another set of eyes
- A passenger is able to recognize when traffic is challenging and stop talking."
I guess we'll have to ban blind people from traveling in cars then.
A blind person can still hear. Further more, when you stop talking because you're concentrating he wont start yelling "Frank, Frank, are you still there, speak up if you're still there Frank, Frank, Frank... Must of gotten cut off" and then immediately try to call you back.
No, you have to read carefully. He said per calorie.
I dare you to replace 200g of steak with 1.5 KG of broccoli in your daily diet.
I double dare you.
Sure it may contain more protein per calorie, but you have to eat a lot more to get your required intake (63g per day for a 75 KG adult male). Even at 1.5 KG of broccoli, you're still not getting enough protein. Meat remains the best way to get protein in your diet, if humans hadn't of started eating meat long ago, we'd still be living in trees.
Have you ever traveled to a Third World country with a group of Westerners? My experience is that your group will likely be a full head taller and noticeably more muscular than the the locals. Yes, our diet is better than people in the past had available to them, that doesn't make it wrong.
Never been to Africa I take it.
I have, as as well as Asia and the Americas. You have no idea what you're on about.
People in places like Asia or the Caribean are shorter not because of the lack of food (which is a lie, most countries have plenty of food, it's medicine, education and other essential services they lack) but because they've evolved to be shorter. Africa, which has the most famine affected areas tends to have the tallest people.
Now most westerners will be fatter than most people in 3rd world countries.
But seriously, people who live in the poorest areas of the Philippines, Myanmar or the Dominican Republic have enough food. Education, no, food, yes and definitely eat a healthier diet than the overwhelming majority of westerners. These people lack good education, decent housing, a good standard of medical care, stable government and a whole bunch of amenities that we lack, but they aren't hurting for food. The poorest people will be eating food that is grown locally, even those in large towns or cities will be eating food from fresh markets rather than boxed food from supermarkets.
Wow, classic.
Excuse making to avoid the real issue. You are vain and strive to so things you think other will think you are special and different.
How often are you at 200 meter below the surface of the ocean? and wearing anon specialty diving watch? I would bet...never.
This.
How often will the average person require their watch to be shockproof or dive to 50m, let alone 200m.
In the end, all the average smart watch will need to do is withstand being dropped onto a concrete floor and not die if it gets splashed with water. Not onerous requirements.
But ordinary watches are going to be around for some time, some people will simply prefer them.
I don't want my car to be smart. Instead, make drivers licenses much more difficult to obtain.
This wont help.
You'll just end up with more people driving without a license.
Beyond that, you've got all the people who cant drive who currently hold license. I know its popular to blame everything on those darn kids, but the fact remains people who got their licenses 20 or more years ago weren't tested to the same standards and almost never kept their skills up to date. The 25+ group will be causing the majority of the accidents on the road.
What you need to do, is make it harder to keep your license. Only proper law enforcement on the road will reduce accident rates in the short to mid term. Proper driving training (note: training, not testing) will reduce it in the long term. Of course this means US drivers will need to give up their entitlement mentality (to be fair, Australian drivers aren't much different) and follow the road rules.
What if there's no bike lane, or it's filled with debris, or the bicyclist needs to make a left turn?
If a cyclist needs to make a turn across traffic (right hand turn here in Australia) they should be doing a hook turn.
http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/safety/queensland-road-rules/~/media/Travelandtransport/Cycling/Bike%20user%20guide/Road%20rules%20for%20cyclists/Rules_image_six.ashx
A cyclist should never try to merge into traffic for their own safety.
And if you cant ride in the bike lane for any reason or in traffic without obstructing other road users, its time to get off and walk. Unreasonable obstruction of traffic is illegal in my country and should be in any civilised nation.