Microsoft and Ford to Announce Joint Development Project

[MiretanK]

Originally Posted by DailyTech

As 2007 dawns on us, automaker Ford and software powerhouse Microsoft are expected to announce plans for Windows based, in-car computers.

Sync, the title of the new line of software, cannot yet drive our cars for us, but will help drivers with their computing in important ways. Once the new Windows software is integrated into new Ford vehicles, cosumers will be able to utilize the handsfree cell phone capabilities, media downloads, automatic navigation updates and e-mail.

No comments have been made by Ford representatives, but Microsoft officials have acknowledged the joint announcement of the project. The public can expect the announcements to be made during media days at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, beginning Jan. 7, and the Consumer Electronics Show which opens Jan. 6.

The Wall Street Journal released information stating that the technology will be available in two models of the 2007 Ford lineup. It is expected to be available for all Ford models in 2008. It is also said to be integrated into Lincoln and Mercury models in the future.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, in a quote to The Detroit Free Press, said that to set apart car companies in the future, vehicles will have features such as HD screens, voice recognition, electronic calenders, cameras and navigation systems that include road and traffic conditions. The upcoming Sync project will provide a platform to centralize and standardize all of those functions.

Source: DailyTech - Microsoft and Ford to Announce Joint Development Project

Your car getting BSOD

edit: couldnt resist the temptation

[Player-X]

At least we will be safe in the knowledge that it won't be able to distract the driver long enough to cause a car crash.

[Coolsvilleman]

it still boggles my mind that cars cannot drive themselves. but this has bad idea for the general public written all over it.

[shafeen]

hmm after this thing is released we will see things like car crashed due to microsoft

on the serious side its looks good and looks to be the starting stepsfor making a car driven by computers or artificial intelligence

[D.D.]

the final project should prove to be the least stable thing on the planet

[Typhoon 01]

Ford Explorer Sportista Ultimate Edition
There will probably be 7 versions of it

[leo9986754]

yea really bad idea. i was actually not that interested/excited when i was reading this article because i really dont think thats something new. computer in a car = cop car.

[KanedA]

"oh noes, another fo0okin' ford made traffic jam, damn I'm gonna be late to school/work/whatever, all because of microsofts system which hangs alot" ;p

[darth sephiroth]

If you're gonna make something that risky at least leave it for those who know what they're doing instead of the ones with the biggest $ in their pockets.

A single crash will be fatal... we all know that even though windows has come to be very stable (only took them 20 years...) it still has that occasional crash (and thousands of weird instabilities for absolutely no ****ing aparant reason whatsoever). Even a single weird instability will be fatal (on whatsoever it comes on), not neccessarely only for the ford driver but also the unlucky guy that received a ford panzer up his donkey. And so are all games or other smaller programs by microsoft i have ever tried, even though the crashes are very rare they DO happen and as i've mentioned one will be fatal.

I don't care if you look at this as linux-fanboyish or anything else. I am not saying the people who write linux will write it perfect either. I'd say shoot the whole project before it sees the light of that, but if you're gonna go though with the project anyway, use the best not the 20-or-so-years-in learning-and-still-learning-type-of-guys.

[Player-X]

darth sephiroth I don't think the computer will be tied into the systems of the car other than the battery and so a crash will not be fatal unless the guy is driving down the road while checking his emails.

[darth sephiroth]

yeah but unless his attention is focused on checking if the system is crashing or not all the time he won't notice it in time. Having to keep focus all the time will ruin the entire point, and unless they write something 100% crashless the whole thing is pointless.

[Player-X]

If it doesn't crash people will be too busy playing around with it but if it crashes often people will be too busy looking at it to see if it crashes, I suggest having a system that disables it when you are driving which kills the point as it's easier to use a computer sitting somewhere other than a car, in the end it is just pointless and likely won't be used at all.

[S.SubZero]

Originally Posted by Coolsvilleman

it still boggles my mind that cars cannot drive themselves. but this has bad idea for the general public written all over it.

Cars do not drive themselves because the conditions under which driving occurs is not binary. There is no "if these variables are set to these values, ALWAYS do the following action" in driving. The decisions we make when driving are ones only humans can make. They are only now making cars that can parallel park automatically, which is a process that happens at about 1mph. Even THAT is a massive, massive undertaking for a computer to do.

Also, people have been putting computers in their cars for years. This is hardly new, it's just new that a car maker is going to OEM the process. mp3car.com has been around practically since the mp3 itself.

[darth sephiroth]

Originally Posted by Player-X

If it doesn't crash people will be too busy playing around with it but if it crashes often people will be too busy looking at it to see if it crashes, I suggest having a system that disables it when you are driving which kills the point as it's easier to use a computer sitting somewhere other than a car, in the end it is just pointless and likely won't be used at all.

if it doesn't crash peoples attention will be everywhere else than the roads, and i somehow doubt the thing will automatically detect road conditions.
So i agree, the whole thing is pointless.

[Cid Highwind]

*release airbags*

Are you sure?

[yes] [no]

[Silenus]

Playing Pcsx2 on my car, sweeeettt!!!