Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

How do we pay for parking?

cohost.org

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

151–160 of 347 posts

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#151

Post by frollo »

liendolucas wrote: post #111

Oh yes, the world is enshittificating at an unbelievable pace. Here's one I have recently had to deal with. Sometime ago I failed my theory driving exam. The computers presented a series of 30 questions, to which you answer true or false. Fast forwarding to a few weeks ago, I found myself for round 2. The computers have all been changed. Shiny IBMs ThinkCentre with a small camera on top. The exam is supposed to start…

Italian government and enshittification, name a more iconic duo, I'll wait.

They built (more correctly, paid) for the IO app for it to be the one touch point for interacting with the government, then started cutting off features from it in other apps. Now they want to aggregate everything again on CIE, which not everyone has yet. Then you have local governments (looking at you, Lombardia) which build random apps which technically support SPID (something like state-provided SSO) and CIE (SAME THING) but wrap them through their custom authentication system because what's better than multiple passwords for the same account? Which already has 2FA?

Man, I wonder if they ever use the crap they build.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#153

Post by dools »

This is the direct and deliberate result of small government libertarianism. Even if a private parking app is used it should be procured by local government according to a set of accessibility criteria, not left to competing private sector organisations. Parking is a natural monopoly, it’s an area where consumers do not want choice, and should be supplied as a public good, just like public transport and health and education.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#154

Post by zekrioca »

bluepnume wrote: post #76

We built a startup. You scan a QR code, that sends a text message. If you have a saved card, you pay in the text thread by replying 'pay now', if not you get a link to save a new card. No apps required. Hoping that with enough adoption, it will obviate the need for experiences as bad as this.

The problem is requiring a smartphone in the first place

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#155

Post by djbusby »

lionkor wrote: post #91
djbusby wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why didn't you explain it? Is this more hell?

Why didnt you? Now I have to go watch the video on expensive data, darn it

I didn't watch the video then but I will for you.

It's about the Chicago Parking deal in 2008 with some machines for parking. Daley gave control of parking meters to a private company until 2083. Sold out his citizens. For a super discount. And now, in a shocking twist, the private company is squeezing the citizens and government.

It's a pretty good watch.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#156

Post by [deleted] »

NeoTar wrote: post #107
reilly3000 wrote: post #67

Bill my license plate. That is the UX I want.

I think that introduces some problems: - who should have access to the database linking license plates to addresses? - what about people with vehicles other countries? Less of a problem in North America, but I recently was in Canada, and saw some vehicles with German number plates! - what about false number plates? Or misreads? How does one defend against them? For the last one - a hilarious example: https://www.bbc.…

[deleted]

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#157

Post by beachy »

rootusrootus wrote: post #148
throwawaaarrgh wrote: post #104

I. Hate. Technology. I hate working in this field. I hate how unprofessional every company is, from the largest to the smallest. I hate how incompetent all the engineers are. I hate how no business I have ever worked for has ever trained its workers on anything but how to fill out a time sheet. I hate all the blog posts about inane technical details. I hate how people start building a solution to a problem they're no…

> I. Hate. Technology. I hate working in this field. Periodically I joke around with my family that when I retire (I'm 49 now, so it's not all that far away), I'm never touching another computer again. Ever. Each time I make that joke, it's a little less joke and a little more of an actual plan.

In the book "soul of a new machine", one of the engineers burns out.

> He went away from the basement and left this note on his terminal: "I'm going to a commune in Vermont and will deal with no unit of time shorter than a season."

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#158

Post by bluepnume »

ill13 wrote: post #137
bluepnume wrote: post #76

We built a startup. You scan a QR code, that sends a text message. If you have a saved card, you pay in the text thread by replying 'pay now', if not you get a link to save a new card. No apps required. Hoping that with enough adoption, it will obviate the need for experiences as bad as this.

So an enterprising individual puts a QR sticker right near or over yours and does the same thing, except theirs is a scam. - That should take all of 4-16 hours to setup the software / web side and payment processing [processors who do cannabis / adult products]. - 1 hour to run to Staples and get some laser Av3ry pre-cut stickers. - 1 hour to replace | supplement your 'real' stickers.

Sure -- phishing is a huge problem, but it's also an argument to never build anything ever, because QR codes, sites, apps, emails, etc. can all easily be cloned and used as a phishing attack vector.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#159

Post by mrd3v0 »

nine_zeros wrote: post #109
version_five wrote: post #20

Much of the value in "tech" is basically treating people like shit at scale. In this example, when a lot attendant was needed, they could only be so unhelpful. Now we don't need to pay them, can push their work onto customers, and simply magically drop any "problem" customers. Same with all this shit. Huge companies exist solely to prevent a human from getting human support, and many more extend the concept to "scale…

Oh, have you seen the number of self checkout at grocery stores? I need to do the work of a checkout counter person to pay? Wtf!

Actually as a consumer I prefer self check out. I am much quicker and it is more efficient because now you can have many of these tills in the same area that only a few would have fit, resulting in much faster experience than waiting in queues.

That experience aside, I don't believe there should be jobs where you simply don't think. Manual labour jobs are unfair because they don't reward the brain whatsoever, no creativity, no one loves to do them, and they create a market of labourers with little to no transferable skills thus putting them in an unfair situation if they want or are forced to get a different job.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#160

Post by bluepnume »

xg15 wrote: post #94
bluepnume wrote: post #76

We built a startup. You scan a QR code, that sends a text message. If you have a saved card, you pay in the text thread by replying 'pay now', if not you get a link to save a new card. No apps required. Hoping that with enough adoption, it will obviate the need for experiences as bad as this.

Sounds good, and you probably have the best intentions, but right now, that would just make you standard no. 15. It's quite possible that the third sign on OP's parking lot would have led them to a perfectly user-friendly app with a pleasant and simple payment flow. But with so many apps to choose from and each lot only supporting a random subset of them, it'd be basically luck if you get to use the "good" app, even…

You can also imagine a world where you have a single phone number saved. You text it "I'm at XYZ parking lot in ABC city, how do I pay?" and it gives you the easiest possible option.

Definitely standard no. 15, but there's room for something better to win out here right?

Post reply on HN