How did you operate the remote start before RKE transmitters?
When I was a kid, I was the remote start, and the TV remote, Lawn mower remoteā¦
Thatās why I had kids LOL
5 Likes
The privacy ship left the harbor long ago
4 Likes
Iāve never been a fan of the āinternet of thingsā. I really donāt know, or care, if my toaster can talk to my refrigerator during the day. Maybe it keeps them from getting lonely.
6 Likes
Personification, attributing attributes of human nature to inanimate objects, Wonder how AI fits in.to the schema. Hard to go back to getting up to rotate the tuner to change a channel on the TV!
1 Like
3 Likes
The term āmodemā (an electronic gadget inside the car presumably) as used in the article confuses me. I think of a modem of something youād connect a POTS telephone device to; i.e. digital data sent over plain old telephone system lines. Thatās obviously not what is meant by āmodemā in the article.
Electronics-talk, the term āmodemā is just an abbreviation for āModulator-Demodulatorā, So it conceivably could be anything used to transmit and receive modulated signals (data, audio, analog) , either via EM waves through the air, or modulated signals on wires.
What does the term āmodemā mean as an in-car device?
I wonder how many different electronic paths exist into modern cars these days?
- Direct RF, EM waves transmitted by hand-held device to in-car receiver, e.g. key fob
- Transmitted by antenna on pole not too far away to in-car modem, EM waves in the cell-phone band
- Transmitted by antenna on pole not too far away to in-car modem, EM waves in WiFi band
- Transmitted by nearby WiFi device into car, EM waves in WiFi band
- EM waves in the WiFi band transmitted to in-car WiFi receiver; e.g. remote start via WiFi app
- EM waves transmitted in satellite band, from satellite to in-car receiver, e.g. On-Star
- AM/FM EM waves, for listening to the in-car no-subscription radio
- Satellite EM waves, for listening to subscription radio
(hmmm ā¦ The above list is a little worrying ā¦ lol ā¦ )
Yeah, the term isnāt being used in the old way. āCellular transceiverā is probably closer to the mark. OTOH, the thing in our basement that connects our wireless router to the greater Internet is referred to as a āmodem.ā Maybe the writer thought readers would figure it out from context?
Iām no Luddite; I make good use of lots of current technology. But I draw the line whenever possible against using tech that is more intrusive and inconvenient, as well as often unnecessarily expensive, than my needs.
I did not pay for OnStar in the Chevy Impala I had for awhile and I havenāt ponied up for a nav system in either the Impala or my current Camry.
Yes, I have a smart phone which is very handy but I uninstalled as much bloatware as possible and have disabled more. I donāt download apps because there isnāt enough memory available on my phone, security reasons, and because not everything needs an app. Iām hoping I never require a phone app to be able to use my car at all!
The business I work for has a new customer program being heavily promoted along with its free app. The program can be signed up for online at the company website and used without the phone app but the company is pushing people to install and use the app. Employees are required to sign up. But in my case I did so without downloading the phone app. Managers up the food chain had a fit at me and other employees who have skipped the app. My answer, if the company requires their app on my personal phone, they can pay to buy me an upgraded phone with more memory that can handle the bloated app and pay me a monthly stipend for having their promotional program on my personal device. Awww gee, that aināt happening, surprise surprise. Go figure.
5 Likes
We havenāt seen you enough lately!
1 Like
Iām resisting as much as I can. With all the new TV channel subscriptions (CBS All access, Paramount+, Disney +ā¦etcā¦etc). One person decided to spend time and calculate the cost of someone bought all the TV subscriptions - North of $500/mo.
Aww, thank you, sir. I started a new job seven months ago with crazy hours that leaves me limited time and energy for the internet. But I do pop in here to read some topics when I can.
You should be living a life of leisure.
I was living a life of leisure even before I retired.
1 Like
Not yet for some years more.
KIA is also scheming for an additional revenue stream. My Niro EV has remote climate control, door lock/unlock, valet mode, stop/start charging, you get the drift, free for one year from date of purchase. I think they want something north of $200/yr after that, no way Jose.
The Corporate Control Freaks want to cage you in so you only spend money at their establishment. Whether itās CCās, supermarkets with digital coupons, Moe Monday, freaky friday, free this, ten percent off that, if you get the app, app, app, app.
I just cut the cable and so now I have streaming apps, lots of them. Iām still burning kwhās with a stupid plasma TV, had to get a Chromecast. Guess what, needs an app. The crystal ball/palm reader scanner app says it sees a Smart TV in my future and to run it, app.
Will the homes of the future be pre-wired for surveillance cameras? Nah, St Elon will just incorporate it into the self driving Twitter app.
Could be worse. Every time you stomp on the accelerator or brake pedal too hard, that event could be time-stamped & emailed to your auto insurance company ā¦ oh wait ā¦ lol ā¦
1 Like
Even worse would be rotating the antenna for best reception after rotating the tuner.
3 Likes
The future to watch out for. My son spent 6 months working in England. He had a TV in his apartment but had to be careful using it because he didnāt have the required license. Much like the Germans did during the war, the English would send a truck around with the antenna on top searching for illegal TV signals.
Then he had to make sure that he put enough coins in the power box so the lights wouldnāt go off during a shower. When it happens once you learn.
I heard the rumor too that the cable companies prior to the digital conversion would send trucks out searching to see how many TVs you had connected to their system. I guess they figured 7 was too many. Iāve still got 7 but use the antenna in the attic to supplement for the time being.
In one regard I guess I am a bit of a Luddite. Iāve never had cable for my tv, just an antenna for whatever stations I can get antenna reception. Here in the St. Louis MO market that is far more stations than I ever watch. I also donāt have Netflix, Roku, etc. nor do I have an Alexa or Siri device. Do I miss out on some programming Iād enjoy? Sure. But I enjoy more staying within my limited budget so I can afford to keep my two cats who are great entertainment in their own right.
As to cars, frankly I enjoy many features my 2014 Camry and predecessor 2007 Impala had that my previous 1987 Olds and 1973 Corolla did not. If it were in my budget, sure, Iād enjoy having Pandora or such for a wider choice of music. But the idea of paying a subscription for basic functions to work is a scary looking future. Just ask farmers whoāve been fighting that subscriber system just to keep tractors and other machinery running.
3 Likes