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GM's press release is funny and has its measure of truth. It accurately reflects the history of the automobile up to sometime in the twenties or thirties. It reflects aviation up till, well, about the time of the Coupe. In the development history of every technology, there's an initial period of frantic development. Products fail. Products fail intermittently. They are all controlled differently. The new versions have to be controlled differently from yesterday's versions. Until the technology matures, all the kinds of problems listed below can occur. Autos and planes both had histories like that shown below, I think. When "Architectural Stabilization" sets in, a pretty good method of controlling the technology has been found and it's adopted by all. The main features are included in everyone's product. Though there are make and model differences, you can get in any similar product and "drive" it. The performance range doesn't change much for a bunch of years. There may be a new spurt later if new technologies spur radical changes. My 1948 Pontiac wood-side station wagon with an automatic transmission did about the same job as my new minivan. (I don't want to trade back.) The working speeds were about the same and the load capacity was similar. I do have better chairs, radio, and safety and the windows are bigger, now. I use less fuel, too. I hope we don't figure it all out for computers too soon. I want a LOT more development of capabilities before the curve of development flattens too much. Ed Burkhead Advanced Technology Services Computer Help Desk -----Original Message----- From: Pete Thomson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 6:28 PM To: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]' Subject: [COUPERS] This is too good not to pass on "If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics: 1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day. 2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car. 3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this. 4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine. 5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast, and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads. 6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "General Protection Fault" warning light. 7. The airbag system would ask, "Are you sure?" before deploying. 8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna. 9. Every time GM introduced a new car, buyers would have to learn to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car. 10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off." ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?aVxiLm.aVzvvT Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
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