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Joined 2 years ago
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Cake day: June 8th, 2023

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  • Car manufacturers should get out of the dashboard design business. Just have an API standard for devices to control the car, and a USB port for users to plug in whichever device works best for them. You want a bunch of physical buttons? Cool, go down to AutoZone and buy a button panel that matches your needs. You want a big screen with carplay and a bunch of widgets? Mount your old iPad there.

    The regulatory side would be the hard part. Devices would have to meet some safety standards and the car would have to refuse to drive unless an approved dashboard was connected, but it could be done.











  • The question is more about “how much” of PD they support right? Like PD has standards for charging at higher or lower currents.

    My understanding of the current-gen MacBook Pro is that they support some kind of “fast charging”, but only if you use their MagSafe port. You can still charge on the USB-C ports, but not as fast as you could with MagSafe. I’m not sure if that’s a violation of the regulations, or if PD simply doesn’t have support for the amount of power they’re pushing through the MagSafe.

    But I think the point is that they’ll continue to look for ways to offer a better experience with their proprietary stuff, even if they’re forced to support a standard in addition.


  • The real test on this one is going to be in how well those regulations support the eventual transition from USB-C to something else.

    There’s inevitably going to be a use case for new connectors that have some yet-unidentified advantage over USB-C for certain devices, and there’s going to be hurdles convincing regulators to grant exceptions for those devices or to adopt one of them as the new standard for everybody.

    There’s plenty of examples of government regulations gone wrong trying to transition from an old technology to a new one. (i.e. the REAL ID format in the US, or the switch from analog to digital broadcast TV).







  • Several years ago I made an ill-advised trip to the ATM in a strip club. My bank did the smart thing and cut me off, so I called the number on the back of the card but an automated recording told me they’re closed and to call back during business hours. Went home with enough money to still pay rent, but still needed to unlock the account, so I called first thing in the morning. The entire process was automated. “Press 1 if this transaction was from you or 2 if your card was stolen”.

    Not sure if the automated system takes the night off, or if there’s just an extra rule that lies about it to help you avoid certain mistakes.