[aclug-L] Smart Cars

["Wilner, Alden" <alden.wilner@xxxxxxxx>]

Anybody out there in a philosophical state of mind?  'Cause I've been musing
about Open Source, and Linux, and Cars that can drive themselves. This isn't
a Linux technical question, and it has little to do with Linux per se, but
it speaks to the philosophy that moves the Linux community, and I hope you
will find it entertaining and perhaps challenging. 

What is one invention that could significantly improve the quality of life
for almost all Americans?  Smart Cars. Cars that drive themselves. Cars that
you can read a book in. Cars that won't get "road rage" or fall asleep at
the wheel, and cars that can drive their drunk owners home.

How far away from reality are smart cars? Technically, they're already here.
Economically they're a long way off. And it has to do with the Linux
philosophy.

Why isn't Linux accepted more readily at major corporations? I'll tell you
what one company's answer is: There's no one to sue if things go horribly
wrong. See, with Windows, you have this behemoth with piles of cash in
Redmond, and if their mail server crashes and costs you a week's
productivity, you can haul them into court and recover some of the money
your company lost. (At least, that's the theory.  I've not heard of anyone
actually _doing_ that).  With Linux there's no one to sue.  You could sue
individual developers, but there's no way you're gonna get near the money
you could from a giant corporation.

But one person's problem is another person's opportunity....

Given the tremendous safety improvements that could be realized with smart
cars, why isn't more being done to develop them? Because everyone's afraid
of getting sued. Existing smart cars are really pretty stupid.  They require
an attentive driver behind the wheel at all times. The ideal smart car won't
require any human intervention at all.  In the middle of the development
curve will be cars that can almost drive themselves, but not quite. With
these cars, the failure modes are likely to be spectacular, and dangerous.
No corporation is going to risk the lawsuits that would result from such
accidents.

Enter the Open Source Philosophy of Linux (et al).

Suppose a group of developers were to decide that massive improvements in
highway safety and convenience were a laudable goal. Suppose these
developers got together and started creating an open-source smart car.
Suppose smart cars were developed, in effect, by hobbyists, not
corporations. 

In this environment, if a single individual has a catastrophic failure of
their smart car, they are still liable for prosecution (assuming they
survive!), but there's no corporation to attack. The liability is strictly
contained. Development can proceed and improvements can continue to be made.
And eventually smart cars will become so smart that nobody will be able to
deny that they are better drivers than the humans inside them, and they will
become, not just accepted, but commonplace, and perhaps even required.

Consider the case of the stereotypical drunk driver. He has been out
partying until the wee hours of the morning, and must now find his way home
through dark, empty streets, probably on surface roads the whole way, with
speed limits never in excess of 30 mph, etc. etc. This is the perfect
situation for smart car development. If our smart car drives home at 20 mph
in something approaching a straight line, it will be at least as good as the
drunk driver behind the wheel. And, unlike the drunk driver, our smart car
is extremely unlikely to get overconfident and start driving at 60 mph. Now,
to me that means that smart cars could start saving lives inside a year,
with enough hardware & software developers. 

So, do you suppose anyone in the Linux community is interested in this
opportunity for Massive Social Improvement? ...in this chance to Really Make
A Huge Difference? 

Well, that's my philosophical rambling for the day. Please be gentle with
the flames.

Sincerely,
Alden Wilner (alden.wilner@xxxxxxxx)

Was it the earth of Earth that Anteus required under his feet for strength,
or would the soil of some other planet do? -- Kenneth Brower

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