While traveling with Google Maps providing navigation I discovered that I could not sleep the screen without Google Maps navigation closing. I would then have to restart Google Maps navigation each time I opened the screen. In short I believe this is due to the power settings for Google Maps app on my Android phone.
Note: This article is intended for my use only and simply serves as a mental refresher.
I personally love technology, as a tool to better our lives by saving the labor of our hands and so on. However, when technology starts being used to coerce individuals into behaving or acting in ways the programmers or politicians deem “ideal” it simply erodes our personal liberties.
Take, for example, the seat belt alarm in my 2005 Toyota Camry. It is programmed to issue a loud audible and persistent alarm to “encourage” me to fasten my safety belt should I begin driving without it fastened. If I have it fastened and I need to temporarily remove the seat belt while driving, it is triggered again. If I have any significant weight in the passenger seat (such as a computer tower) and the safety belt isn’t fastened the loud and persistent alarm goes off again. Poor programming? Doesn’t matter, I take personal responsibility for my choice to either put the seat belt on or not.
I am not going to tell you that you should or should not wear your seat beat. It’s your life and your responsibility and I believe you know what is best for you. But I will tell you the steps needed in order to disable this alarm, should you be so inclined.
We recently assisted a local automotive repair company in Naples, Florida with their Ford IDS software.
The Ford Integrated Diagnostic System (IDS) is the only equipment that provides complete diagnostic coverage of current and future Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles in North America. IDS is software runs on a standard Windows based laptop, and utilizes the Vehicle Communication Module (VCM), VCM II and Vehicle Measurement Module (VMM).
But what happens when this device fails, or more commonly, the IDS software fails? Automotive shops and even dealerships around the country know that updating their IDS software is a gamble. Some simply refuse to update until they are forced, by the software, to do so. This is what recently happened to this local automotive shop.
