Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer • Hacker News Board

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#511

Post by hoten » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 4:31 PM UTC

hoten wrote: post #350

NobodyNada wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I bought a Focus with Sync 1 last year, and it was infuriating. The most infuriating part was that every time the car starts it defaulted to aux in mode, and there’s no button on the panel to switch to Bluetooth — if I wanted to listen to music from my phone, it took about 8 or 9 button presses to navigate through three levels of nested menus to get to the “media source” option. Every time I got in the car. I finally…

I know exactly what you mean. I didn't replace it, but instead in my muscle memory (and part of my car "boot sequence") is pressing a button, precisely turning a knob twice and pressing a button again. I've done it thousands of times now. Ford Fusion 2012 BTW

Ah, the combo is actually different, and longer. Funny how you can do something so many times but fail to explain it accurately. I guess that's muscle memory for you.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#512

Post by dont__panic » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 4:43 PM UTC

bowsamic wrote: post #375

vanilla_nut wrote: post #242

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been slowly writing a near-future science fiction story where everyone drives around 15 feet above the ground and has to enter their car on a ladder, because over 50 years vehicles slowly crept up in height and nobody wanted to be the "low car" on the road. It started out as a joke back in 2010, partially inspired by "A Nice Morning Drive" ( http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19731100roadand... ) from…

Have you heard of jean yanne’s l'apocalypse est pour demain? It is a story about a society where people live in their cars 24/7. It is very interesting but I’m not sure if there’s an English translation

Sounds a lot like the Doctor Who episode "Gridlock" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gridlock_(Doctor_Who))!

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#513

Post by hedora » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 4:47 PM UTC

kernal wrote: post #492

hedora wrote: post #417

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As long as Google will pay to recall and repair the truck the day they stop security updates, and also guarantee that it makes zero connections to their servers, the arrangement you describe is no worse than the status quo.

Why would Google pay for something Ford is entirely responsible for? Ford is rolling a customized version of Android Automotive, as all car OEMs are. Do you blame Google for Samsung not updating their phones?

Of course I blame Google for Samsung not providing upgrades to a Google-branded OS.

Do you blame Dell when Microsoft screws up the start menu?

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#514

Post by hedora » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 4:49 PM UTC

xeromal wrote: post #489

hedora wrote: post #409

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it really gets 300+ miles per charge and gets back up to 80% in 41 minutes, then it should be fine for workers that are travelling less than 5 hours a day (or 10 hours if there is a charger near the job site...)

It gets 100 miles per charge if you're hauling a trailer is my point. The lightning gets 1/3 range when hauling. I say this as a EV owner. Constantly thinking about chargers is a huge pain in the ass and I promise you, many of these blue collar workers ain't going to want to deal with it.

Oh; that's lame.

I wish someone would just build an EV pickup truck. There have been DIY instructions since the lead acid days, since the frames already have ample space and load bearing capacity for the batteries.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#515

Post by xeromal » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 4:53 PM UTC

hedora wrote: post #514

xeromal wrote: post #489

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It gets 100 miles per charge if you're hauling a trailer is my point. The lightning gets 1/3 range when hauling. I say this as a EV owner. Constantly thinking about chargers is a huge pain in the ass and I promise you, many of these blue collar workers ain't going to want to deal with it.

Oh; that's lame. I wish someone would just build an EV pickup truck. There have been DIY instructions since the lead acid days, since the frames already have ample space and load bearing capacity for the batteries.

My grandpa outfitted his LUV diesel to burn vegetable oil. I always thought that was an exciting way to build a more green vehicle. I personally think hydrogen is the way to go for "heavy" tow vehicles. Has great energy density and it burns green. I believe planes would work well on hydrogen as well.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#516

Post by HWR_14 » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 5:34 PM UTC

kernal wrote: post #500

HWR_14 wrote: post #275

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And, if like more than half of Americans I decided I didn't want an Android phone, now I get coerced to use Android to listen to my subscription music service, etc.

I suggest you research Android Automotive and what exactly it is, as it's not an "Android phone". As for half of Americans not wanting to use Android, because it's Android, I find that statement amusing as you would rather force their customers to continue using their maligned Ford Sync system then a superior solution with an actual ecosystem. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_Automotive

Yes, it's not an Android phone. It's an Android tablet hardwired into my vehicle's bus so it can hoover up data directly from the vehicle and has to be on when the vehicle is. It still runs Google Maps (and reports my location to Google) has the Google Play Store (so any apps would also feed data and money to Google) and still permanently runs the microphone's input through Google's algorithms 24/7 for the Google Voice Assistant.

I don't see what meaningful way it differs.

Is it even going to get updates for a longer period than Android phones? Maybe against security threats. Or it's just been 3 years, upgrade your car.

I suppose it doesn't make phonecalls, that's a difference.

And yes, what I want is a bluetooth speaker that has a radio. My point is I don't want an ecosystem for my car. Saying "Ford Sync system then a superior solution with an actual ecosystem" as an argument to upgrade gets everything backwards.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#517

Post by HWR_14 » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 5:35 PM UTC

kernal wrote: post #501

prepend wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s not as good as my dumb bmw “connected drive” from 5 years ago.

Is that why BMW is integrating Android Automotive? https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/detail/T040187...

Because it's cheaper for BMW, not because it's better for their customers.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#518

Post by RichardCA » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 5:35 PM UTC

suction wrote: post #432

woevdbz wrote: post #282

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having worked in both US and Europe I think this is very much less about average engineer and much more about engineering management and product management. There are many excellent software engineers in Europe already, and they are generally OK being paid much less than in the US. But the strategy, ambition, and execution discipline imparted by management are not there, so folks end up being underutilized there. The…

From my limited experience, I think in bigger European companies (not 10-20 people tech startups) you will have people with little to no technical background doing the domain research and the managing of engineers. I've worked in a French company which calls itself a "tech" company, but upper and middle management was purely people with a controlling, legal, or MBA background. The engineers working there were great,…

> "create something like Facebook"

There's nothing inherently wrong with adding social media features to your customer portal, as long as you understand people will use it to vent their complaints, and you will have to spend money on moderation to keep it from turning into a cesspool.

I still remember when Netflix turned off all their social integration, especially the ability to leave movie reviews and get kudos via upvotes. I spent a non-trivial amount of time engaging with that feature. But I'm sure someone finally pointed out that this sort of engagement wasn't driving any revenue.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#519

Post by throwaway894345 » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 5:37 PM UTC

vanilla_nut wrote: post #244

throwaway894345 wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s an interesting observation that I hadn’t considered. My enthusiasm for EVs has been pretty unmitigated previously. I still think climate is important enough that dealing with the safety stuff is probably tractable and also the lesser evil, but it’s good to have line of sight on it.

Unmitigated ? Are you not worried about the infrastructure impact of doubling the weight of most classes of vehicle?

No, because it's still going to be negligible compared to the wear done by trucks. The average 18-wheeler weighs ~80-90,000 lbs, and the relationship between wear and weight is exponential, not linear. So while 25 Teslas weigh the same as a single 18 wheeler, the 18 wheeler contributes a lot more to road wear than those 25 Teslas. And in any case, infrastructure costs are going to be a rounding error to the economic costs associated with climate change.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#520

Post by throwaway894345 » Wed, Aug 17, 2022, 5:39 PM UTC

namecheapTA wrote: post #264

vanilla_nut wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unmitigated ? Are you not worried about the infrastructure impact of doubling the weight of most classes of vehicle?

Heck, even the safety aspect. And the mining of materials. The recycling aspect (or lack there of), or the disposability of the vehicles if the battery/charging system bricks itself. The Chevy Volt forums are full of people losing thousands of dollars because their low miles car worth about $10k, needs a $10k battery module or two.

Well, we're talking about the safety aspect right now. I'm not particularly worried about the mining of materials or even the disposability because (1) those are tractable problems and (2) ICE cars do many orders of magnitude more damage to the environment even ignoring their associated manufacture and disposal costs.