
Auto Safety Regulators Seek a Driver Mode to Block Apps - perseusprime11
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/11/22/business/auto-safety-regulators-seek-a-driver-mode-to-block-apps.html
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cellularmitosis
I feel like something which is missing from this entire conversation is the
idea of building user interfaces which are easier to use while driving. It
feels like we are stuck in an era when abstinence was the only teen pregnancy
solution which was politically safe to discuss.

A simple example would be a music player where the UI is a full screen block
of solid color which recognizes swipe guestures to control playback. There's
no reason to look at the phone because there's nothing to look at.

A bit more controversial would be Apple automatically dialing up the
accessibility font size boost if the phone is moving faster than 10 mph. We
may not be able to prevent people from using their phones while driving, but
we can reduce the amount of time required to interact with their phone's UI by
using easier-to-acquire font sizes and putting less text on the screen.

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slimsag
Is the issue really with how people interface with applications, or rather
that interacting with applications takes focus away from the road?

A person can be looking at the road with their eyes but not focusing on it
(being prepared to respond) at the same time.

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georgeott
What if you are just a passenger in the car? How will they determine this?

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pcl
A good question. From the article, one of the things the guidelines call for
is that manufacturers _" develop technology to identify when the devices are
being used by a driver while driving. That would ensure the limits are placed
on drivers and not other vehicle occupants."_

I bet that if the handset manufacturers were to work with the car
manufacturers, they could pretty easily locate the phone to a foot or so with
minimal battery impact.

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raldi
So not only will people still use apps while driving, now they'll do it while
reaching their arm _way_ out over the passenger seat.

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StephenConnell
That's not a big change. Don't you already reach way down below the windows so
other drivers and police can't see you are using your phone?

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dangero
If this did pass I can imagine the number of rooted smart phones would
skyrocket. There has never really been a compelling reason to root an iPhone,
but I bet for a lot of people this would be it.

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tajen
Or, as another comment awesomely suggests, we'll have drive-safe modes that
apps can support, boosting both the ergonomy (it's annoying on an iPad that
the large screen only displays a tiny 24px icon to switch tracks) and the
driving safety.

It's all because we, app developers, haven't made things great yet, but sure
it's a strong incentive for Apple to up their game.

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bsder
I hope they do this. I would love to laugh while the carriers _never sell
another phone_ and everybody else installs Cyanogen.

Toyota had to remove a system diagnostic feature that would disable the "can't
adjust nav system while driving" misfeature.

I can just imagine the fuss if you forced someone under 35 to actually not be
able to use their phone for 60 seconds.

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UnoriginalGuy
I wish Toyota would release an update for older vehicles. Our Prius V won't
let you adjust the navigation destination or even reconnect bluetooth devices
while in gear (even with a passenger!). This means that if the bluetooth
connection dies, it won't reconnect until you pull over. Huge pain in the
butt.

Everything this article suggests sounds like a disaster. I'm sure they'll
implement it with low range NFC around the driver, but it will still cause
massive headaches for other occupants and won't even accomplish what it is
meant to (i.e. people willing to break the law now will simply bypass it, and
everyone else will be inconvenienced).

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nihonde
In Japan, dealers install a kill switch for the navi blocker and wink at you
when they deliver the car. Everyone drives with live tv on the dash in full
view of the driver and fully interactive touch screen navi.

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leifg
Switch to self driving cars, problem solved.

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jaxbot
This is my stance. Texting (and apps) while driving is a huge issue, but so is
road rage, DUIs, forgetting to check the bike lane when turning, loud music
that makes it impossible to hear ambulances approaching, massive A pillars in
newer cars that save the passengers in a wreck but make it impossible to see
pedestrians entering a crosswalk when taking a left, people being dicks and
running lights because they're more important than you, and the general fact
that humans get distracted and can never focus on all directions at once. I
appreciate the regulators trying to solve a major piece of the puzzle, but
honestly, if we want to reduce the toll that automobiles are pushing on
society, we need to focus on a world where very few humans are driving. Some
of that is self driving cars, some of that is better rapid transit infra (and
two and two go together).

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btbuildem
> Apple iPhones and other hand-held devices have long had an airplane mode
> that shuts off wireless communications to prevent interference with the vast
> electronics systems that control modern aircraft.

This is such hogwash -- if there was the remotest possibility of phones etc
interfering with onboard instruments of an aircraft, you can bet they'd strip
all your electronics off your person at security and stash them in a lead-
lined bin in the cargo hold for the journey.

It's amazing people just believe what they're told..

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roflchoppa
Serious question, in the event that we don't have fatalities from auto
accidents, where will the organ donations come from? Will it be a good push
for stem cell technology?

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copperx
We can make organ donation an opt-out checkbox.

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roflchoppa
i dont see why you would not want to be an organ donor, body is just a rental
anyway?

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ajmurmann
I think the parents point is that we have seen in some places (Netherlands?)
that a dramatic increase in organ donors happened when they switched from opt-
in to opt-out.

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pjmlp
In Portugal we have opt-out, while here in Germany it is opt-in, I never
understood the decision, exactly because of what you mention.

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brian-armstrong
The solution to this is simple: one way or another, except for people whose
job it is to drive, we should stop having people drive cars, whether that
means public transit, more bike lanes, or self-driving cars or something else.

I do think it's possible to approximately locate a driver's phone, though it
will likely work relatively imperfectly. But then consider that driving drunk
is also a huge hazard, and yet most people don't have breathalyzers required
to start their cars (and yes, this technology does already exist)

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emp_zealoth
Man, I'm so tired of the whole self-driving meme

It's years off in most of the world, while more and more sophisticated
infotaiment screens that can distract the drivers are ALREADY on the market

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mikestew
No shit. Every "problems with driving and cars" thread inevitably has a half
dozen people who are way too pleased with themselves saying "won't be a
problem in just a few years with self-driving cars!" It's almost the
dictionary definition of "hand-wave away". BTW, and I hate to digress, but
how's that "year of the Linux desktop" going twenty years later?

I've probably got twenty, thirty years at best left before I depart this
mortal coil. When my body reaches room temperature, I expect at best self-
driving cars will be an expensive novelty. In the meantime, can we go on with
solving today's problems with today's, or near-future technologies and quit
hand-waving with vaporware?

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jimminy
I was thinking about this the other day.

The Apple patent on IR blocking for concert bvenues, would fit this purpose
pretty well.

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dmode
The Android Auto app on Android smartphones already does this. It has still
have some ways to go with other app developers participating, but that could
be a model for future.

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tdkl
The further worthless nannying continues. We're on the Autobahn to idiocracy.

