1. In Houston, we have the ability to go to a website and see realtime traffic speeds on different freeways (I suspect other large metropolitan areas have the same capability). They do this by monitoring the EZTags people have for the tollroads.

It would be awesome to have this information downloaded and integrated with the nav system. Then, when the computer is calculating a route it could take into consideration traffic conditions.

2. Would be great if the nav system could download information about road construction, road closings, accidents, floods, etc. for your area and take it into account when calculationg routes.

3. Should learn how you like to drive. For example, no matter what destination I am going to, the nav system picks a less-than-optimal route out of my subdivision. When I take a better route, it recalculates. But, it should be able to say "gee, the last 100 times I've suggested this route, the driver has taken this other route instead, so maybe I'll just suggest the driver's route in the first place".

4. Frankly, I'm amazed that this hasn't happened yet, but it's only a matter of time before we have some kind of ad placement on the nav system (maybe to help pay for providing all the other features I mentioned, or maybe to lower the price of the nav system so it's more mainstream). When you want to find a restaurant, instead of looking it up on the DVD, it would download the information from a current database (so you don't get sent to a place that is out of business, which has happened to me).

What I see happening is that different restaurants would pay to be placed at the top of the list, kind of like the Internet search engines. Take it one step further - you are driving along and it's around lunch time. A little window pops up in the corner of your nav system - "Hungry for Seafood? Eat at Joe's Crab Shack", or some other restaurant that is relatively close. You click on the ad and it calculates the route and takes you there.

 

Trust me, there will be significant advances in Vehicle communications in the next 5 years. Some may be welcomed - traffic updates, news..
Also, you car having the ability to send information about itself too.. there are many uses for this.. one example today is the toll booths, and having something on your car sending it's identity..

A very well-known German car mfgr is planning on something kinda cool pretty soon - similar to when they included a bike; well they are now going to include a device that has become very popular in the last couple years..

The only problem with most auto manufactures is that they are reluctant to put sophisticated computer systems in cars.

The reason being that when they put a car out there, it is expected to run for 10+ years. And if you think about it, in 10 years, computers will be much faster and smaller. Also, they have to withstand extreme conditions - 100+ degree temps to below freezing.

That is why Acura went from the HD based system to the DVD. HD are not meant to be put in conditions that change in temperature all the time.

There are just some really cool mobile technologies that are planned that I cannot discuss.. but they are coming..

 

How long before Windows CE is on the NAVI???

:-jon

 

That's going to be scary. Will a crash in the Windows OS crash the car too? How about a blue screen of death?


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2002 Satin Silver TL-S Nav

 

Just realized that I turned from "Insane Poster" to "Freak". Happy posting...

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2002 Satin Silver TL-S Nav

 

I didn't mean to imply that I liked the idea of advertising, just that I think it is only a matter of time. The number one comment I have heard on the Nav system is that it's really cool, but it's not worth $2000. Many of us have wrestled with that same cost/benefit equation. But suppose that through inevitable decreases in hardware cost and revenue made through some type of advertising, they could sell the Nav system as a $500 option. You would see much more rapid widespread adoption of the technology. I think it's just a matter of time before someone figures this out.

If it's done right, I might not be a bad thing. For example, I have an Ultimate TV system, and when I view the program guide, on the left-hand side, there are usually a couple of advertisements for various shows. The cool thing is, these ads are tailored based on my viewing history. For example, I watch a lot of NASCAR, and I have noticed now that a lot of the ads are for NASCAR related shows.

The point is, it's not just mindless annoying advertising - it's suggesting something it knows I might be interested in based on past experience in a non-intrusive way. If they implemented the advertising on a nav system in the same way - analyzing what restaurants, theaters, and other activities you go to often and basing the advertising on this data, it wouldn't be so bad and would actually be pretty useful for some people (you're on a roadtrip and it's lunch time and surprise - your favorite fast food chain is just two blocks away).

As for Windows CE - I have given MS a lot of grief over the years (used to be a VC programmer, which is a painful experience), but I will say that they have recently gotten their stability act together, at least in the area of operating systems. Windows 2000 is just rock solid, and the aforementioned Ultimate TV system is based on Windows CE and it has never crashed in 4 months of usage now.

 

Actually, the Auto-PC was a stripped down version of CE. It worked actually pretty well.. however, the problem was that the unit was way to delicate for a car.. thus that is why it flopped.. Microsoft is barely putting any money into that program anymore..

But don't be surprised if there are other venders making srides in this space..

mikester,
You're absoluetly right about MS Windows.. I used NT for the longest time and just starting using 2000 last year, it is a great improvement.. and being a programmer myself, I can understand what you mean..
I see the Pocket PC platform taking off, it is just more versitile than the Palm OS, IMO.. And the next generation of palmtops will be awesome..

 

Windows CE is already on a navi! It's the Clarion AutoPC. It sucks.

 

HAHAHAHAHA... thats what i tell my friends... I'm all... this thing is cool and stuff.. but it sure AINT the smartest thing on earth at all... there are so many times i used it and it gives me stupid directions but if i keep driving it'll recalculate.... i don't know how many times it has asked me to "U turn if possible"... i'm like.. I'm NOT making a f*ckin U turn cuz I KNOW how to get to that damn place haha... and i keep driving then it'll give me the "smarter" direction (like how i would drive hehe)

ONE sweet thing that i notice though is that if your destination is on a big street and it's say on the sorth side of the street right... it'll show you directions so the destination wouldn't end up being on the opposite side of the street you're driving on... it'll go around the block so the destination is gonna be on your right (the passanger side)... and I find that useful... cuz if it just goes... "destination on the left" and if i'm on like say a 6-lane street.. then I'd be pissed.. cuz I'm like.. where the hell am i supposed to park?? across the street and J-walk on a 6-lane street? uh i don't think so....

my friends and i were just talking about this over dinner last night actually... about how the next generation navi will include real time traffic report.. it's only matter of time they come up with it.. cuz i can get those information from my cell phone already... all they need is to hook up the navi to a wireless internet device and download those information.... it WILL come out in the near future..

but regarding the ads on the navi.. i'm not very big on that... cuz i'd hate to have these pop up all the time... now IF it's like an "on demand" thing then i'd be different... like a button that says.. "find closest restaurants" wouldn't hurt

 

This is definitely coming our way. If I'm not mistaken, the Nissan navi in Japan has begun to incorporate live traffic via a cellular link.

Yep, this has to be the number one most requested feature! It would be great to be able to enter and store a custom route.

Heh heh, a couple of friends and I have actually talked about implementing this! A perfect application would be an ad-sponsored GPS for a rental car company. You get a free GPS with your rental car, but a dedicated panel on the screen will always display ads for restaurants, gift stores, etc. within some distance from your current position. You heard it here first!

One feature I'd like to see is a remote server-based business directory. The business listings in the Navi DVD must be a year old! I would like to use a cellular link to search for constantly updated business information.

How about doing away with the DVD, going back to the hard-disk, and downloading map updates via cellular? The car can download updates while you sleep. When you wake up the next morning, the road database would be updated with all the latest roads, closures, road construction info, etc.

Another (more sinister ) use would be to transmit your present position to a specific receiver. That way parents can track where their children drive, if they are speeding , etc. Commercial GPS users already use this to track their fleet.

There's a whole bunch of uses for a GPS Navi connected to the network!

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[This message has been edited by daverman on June 23, 2001 @ ]</font>

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[This message has been edited by daverman on June 23, 2001 @ ]</font>

 

These are all great ideas but to tell you this truth, there are only a few of us that really want these features and are will to pay for them. If you can't get folks to pay for the development and implementation and upkeep/maintenance of these features, it's not going to happen anytime soon.

And finally, there's the legal implications of using a Navi while driving. The Acura Navi is getting away with it because it doesn't do much, but put a complicated, multi-featured Navi on-board that the driver can toy around with during 50% of the commute is going to attract some serious attention [from lawmakers]. IMO

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* 2001 Acura CL Type S * Blk/Blk * Navigator * Spoiler * Moonroof Visor *
* Since 3/31/2000 *
Road Warrior

 

It's all a matter of user interface design, IMO. The Acura/Alpine Navi has a great UI but it's no paragon of sophistication. The less you have to look at your screen, the better.

The keyboard entry system, for example, is fantastic, but its sound prompts fall just short of being great. For example, the "beep" doesn't always immediately follow a keypress (the unit takes a moment to filter the keys first before beeping). Also, you can't tell if the entry is going to switch to the list-selection mode; a double-beep will help you to identify this. Shortcomings like these force you to stare at the screen when glancing is often good enough.

When all else fails, a motion interlock can be used. Certain functions will only be available when moving at less than 5 MPH, for example. But this is an annoying hack to get around a flaw in the user interface.

As to how they will pay for development, I say, "make 'em and they'll come". Make something COOL and suddenly everyone wants one! If you wait till they want it, no-one will make anything interesting.

As a friend of mine often says, Edison didn't wait for people to want the electric light bulb .

 

I don't need traffic updates in Los Angeles area. I already know that the 405, 101 and 110 are always jammed all the time, all the days of the year.