Live data from Hacker News

Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

bits.blogs.nytimes.com

1–10 of 73 posts

Re: Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

#3

Nice, I like the forward thinking by ford on this. I only wish next they open up the engine controller, and let the real hackers in!

I can't imagine the amount of penetration testing they'd need to do before opening up core components of a car. I would not want to be in charge of that project.

Re: Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

#5
This sounded awesome right up to the point that they said that this was a hotly pursued space due to advertising potential to a captive audience. If I am in my own car and my music is interrupted with an ad every time I drive by a McDonalds - I would find that extremely annoying.

On the other hand, if you could lease a car at a subsidized price in exchange for ads, that might be an attractive offer to some.

Re: Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

#7
post #3

Nice, I like the forward thinking by ford on this. I only wish next they open up the engine controller, and let the real hackers in!

I can't imagine the amount of penetration testing they'd need to do before opening up core components of a car. I would not want to be in charge of that project.

I can't imagine any halfway competent legal department ever endorsing such a thing.

Re: Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

#8
post #3

Nice, I like the forward thinking by ford on this. I only wish next they open up the engine controller, and let the real hackers in!

I can't imagine the amount of penetration testing they'd need to do before opening up core components of a car. I would not want to be in charge of that project.

Of course they'd never open that up, that was just me dreaming.

Re: Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

#9
post #5

This sounded awesome right up to the point that they said that this was a hotly pursued space due to advertising potential to a captive audience. If I am in my own car and my music is interrupted with an ad every time I drive by a McDonalds - I would find that extremely annoying. On the other hand, if you could lease a car at a subsidized price in exchange for ads, that might be an attractive offer to some.

Yea I couldnt believe that when I read it.

Once you got past all the requirements these 'ads' would have to adhear to, to not be distracting or dangerous, it becomes a pretty limp form of advertising.

The reason people own nice dash-systems, and iPods is so they dont have to listen to ads. There is absolutely no way anyone would buy a car that forces ads on them unless it was HEAVILY subsidized.

This is beyond retarded, and if advertising really is their motivation, this will fail hard.

Why isnt having a cool fancy dashboard without ads enough? Doesn't that do enough to make the car desirable, and competitive?

Re: Ford Releases An SDK For Their Cars

#10
When I bought my 2009 Ford Fusion it was marketed as having "Microsoft Sync", the Sync name has stuck around but I haven't seen any mention of Sync being or derived from Microsoft technology in Ford's marketing in the last couple year (nor in the article). I wonder if that is still the back end of it or if Ford rebuilt Sync from the ground up?
Post reply on HN