Texting People Via License Plates Isn't Social Networking -- It's Just Stupid
from the back-to-the-drawing-board dept
We recently noted how the latest useless trend was to add "social networking" to everything, highlighting some company's efforts to make social-networking taxis. This latest service one ups that: license plate-based "social networking" for drivers. Basically, you can register your license plate with this service, and then users can send you text messages by sending an SMS in that begins with your plate number. It's an idea that's been tried before, as well as adapted for use by the Finnish police, but this is the first time it's been called social networking! Whatever you call it, it really doesn't sound like such a great idea. Now, instead of just shooting you the middle finger, you can give other drivers the opportunity to deliver personalized text insults to you. Then, when you're on a PC (hopefully not while you're driving), you can view other drivers' profiles and try to hook up with them to, uh, fix their flat or something. The head of the company says it's "both simple and safe because you control the privacy" -- simple, perhaps, but how safe is a service that encourages people to type text messages on their phone while they drive? We've pointed out problems with laws that ban phone use while driving before, mainly that they distract from the real problem: unsafe driving. However, it's pretty safe to say that in nearly every instance, texting while driving wouldn't qualify as safe driving. So not only is this a pointless application of so-called social networking, it's a pretty stupid one as well.
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Eh....
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@AMP
At the young age of 16, I am just old enough to get the social networking thing, and I agree this idea is a VERY stupid idea.
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Re: Eh....
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Just what I want
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Re: Just what I want
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Just What I Want
On the ther hand, I have often wanted to tell some dipwad who just cut me off just what I think of him/her and this would be perfect. Sometimes an upraised central digit just does not convey enough.
BTW: how are we supposed to know that the car we want to TM has registered with the service? A sticker in the window? Looks like a new way to harvest ID's for text spamming.
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Re: Just What I Want
slurry of txt messages sent to me from guys trying to hit on my wife when she drives my car
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Re: Just What I Want
I am located in Las Vegas, and travel to Los Angeles frequently and man o man there are some really horrible drivers out there...
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Sorry...
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It's going to inspire a whole hell of a lot more road rage.
The death toll will rise in every city.
Cops will be stretched to thin and never be paid enough.
Sounds like the American Way!
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Re:
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Cell phones will kill us all...
DVD players to shut kids up in the backseats are a godsend. Crashing your car beacuse you want to watch some porn, as I recall hearing some NFL player did recently, well then you deserve to hit a wall or something, die, and then be tormented for a length of time that the human brain can't even fathom in a most unpleasurable manner. That or just the realization of being a complete dumbass because you wrecked your car. Soon enough some idiot will invent a HUD like device to notify you of incomming calls or even display text messeges, then someone will make one to show all the features of the phone, as to not rip off this U.S. Pat. #, ©, ™, ® device. Once that happens we'll have people playing snake on the freeway and it all goes downhill from there.
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pfft
/sarcasm
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Wise cell phone use, Phone numbers on cars
If you need to send SMS or e-mail while driving, don't tap it out, your eyes will leave the road too long. Do the right thing and subscribe to a mobile voice control service.
As for registering my license plate, no way! We communicate with other drivers well enough as it is.
The more heated angry motorists get the worse the situation becomes. I have seen drivers get into road rage so bad the drivers crash and end up in a physical fight on the side of the road. .
If you have to meet people DRIVING pull off the road smash your cell phone into your head, and take the bus from now on.
I am not on the road for a social time, I am traveling from one place to another, and concentrating on getting there safely is the primary goal. I don't have time or desire to be exchanging unnecessary information with miscellaneous people on the road.
I figure if I did I would probably put big signs on my vehicle with my mobile telephone number on them...
I guess anyone who wants to participate in this type of social networking could do the same thing. WOW big signs, new concept.
As for the rest of us we will just keep motoring down the road anonymously.
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Re: Wise cell phone use, Phone numbers on cars
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Re: Wise cell phone use, Phone numbers on cars
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Re: Wise cell phone use, Phone numbers on cars
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I actually like this idea
eg. someone parked over your drive way and you can't get out, a car has been parked out the front of my house for 2 weeks and I want to know if the car is abandoned or stolen etc.
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Re: I actually like this idea
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Re: 11
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Quoted for Truth.
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Again, WHINING
People above have already mentioned potential positives. I include Jesse's idea of confirming it's reported/stolen. "Mindless American" I'd say is not a U.S. citizen but some f***tard putting down Americans, because obviously he or she's the mindless one. Jesse's idea is great BECAUSE the police are not involved!! Imagine, PEOPLE ACTUALLY BEING ABLE TO SOLVE A PROBLEM THEMSELVES WITHOUT HAVING TO CALL THE POLICE. I know, such a concept is probably literally foreign to minds that live in socialist states where the government already provides everything for them -- including thinking.
Other potential positives -- being able to message the idiot in front of you that has their turn signal on -- not a HEY F*** YOU BUDDY TURN OFF YOUR ANNOYING SIGNAL, but "hey 'scuze me, buddy, but your signal's on." Or better yet, a guy in a pickup truck is moving between apartments and has a buncha junk in the back, and something falls out -- you can message him and return it. The other day I saw a gal cut a corner too close and she did a "curb check" with the back wheel -- not realizing the impact popped off her wheel cover and sent it spinning into a ditch. I picked it up, and luckily since she was just turning into an entrance to a grocery, she didn't go far -- but if she had, it would have been nice to be able to text her through her plate. Sure I suppose I could have called the police to return it, but again, that's hoping the government fixes things for you, and around here, frankly, the police have better things they should be doing with their time.
Carlo, you get some points for putting more than one link (unlike Mike's B.P.M.** session on the Canon article), but when getting the idea to quote previous Techdirt articles. But you're so biased and convinced this is a BAD idea that you only looked at Techdirt articles where stupid drivers without handsfree cell phones were being idiots and causing dangerous situations. You should have digged a little deeper past your angst and seen that there are a variety of other Techdirt articles that explore the "Guns don't kill people; People with guns kill people" line of thinking. It's not the technology that causes dangerous situations -- it's the morons mis-using the technology.
(**B.P.M. -- slang for b***, p*** and moan)
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Re: Again, WHINING
"hey 'scuze me, buddy, but your signal's on."
Or "you've got a headlight/taillight out". I've often thought it would be nice to have the ability to deliver messages like this to the drivers around me, but texting is not the vehicle for this, let alone trying to "social network" yourself into a date during rush hour.
If delivering the message is any more difficult than pointing at a car and speaking a short message out loud*, it'll be a traffic hazard. (*- speech recognition and IRDA? maybe bluetooth?)
OTOH, I don't know that I want a scrolling LED message board on my dash telling me what the drivers around me think of my lane changes... maybe cacheing messages for later review is a better idea.
Either way, should such a thing come to pass, how long 'til the "|3uy v14Gr4" messages start showing up?
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Not a bad Idea if
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So here's a better idea
You buy a pre-paid cell phone, keep it in the car and post the number on the trunk.
No texting and if you just did something stupid, don't answer. But if I see that you left you gas cap hanging, or don't have your lights on, I can call and let you know.
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It would also be interesting to have the ability to find information on an individual using their plate number without having to hack the DMV or paying for a background check. (Not that I would ever pay someone for something so trivial as a background check. Psh.) Imagine you see an attractive woman at the mall and you follow her to her car, get her plate numbers, then go home and find out what her name is, how old she is, where she lives, where she works, if she's single, and what her favorite color is, if she lives alone-- wait... this is turning into something negative. Never mind.
My point is that this could be a good thing, but it has a lot of potential for bad as well (and I think the bad just might outweigh the good). Of course, everyone knows that this stuff will never catch on and we'll forget about it within a few months.
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RE: #14R
Correct me if I'm wrong, but you seem to think that TechDirt is a journalistic forum of sorts that should be providing unbiased reports, and not a blog. The authors can post an article and cast it in any light they please, as it's their service they're providing. The whole idea is to get people thinking about something. To give an opinion about a topic is the best way to generate debate, because someone will always disagree.
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For Sale Signs
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PlateWire is in the game as well...
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This has Darwin Award potential
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Re: Crashes
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talking
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Platewire
That one site that was mentioned too, aboveaveragedriver.com has great stats. They have been around for several years too and compete with another large one, roadragers.com...but that one seems not as active as the others.
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AboveAverageDriver.com
The other site is cool. I was looking for stats for class on aggressive driving and used aboveaveragedriver.com. I contacted the admin there and they were very helpful with giving out some of their records to help with class.
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How is it NOT social networking?
A social network is a social structure made of nodes (which are generally individuals or organizations) that are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as values, visions, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, kinship, dislike, conflict or trade. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_network
Ignorance of how License Plate messaging actually works only makes you "look stupid". To get the knowledge to understand your representations of the License Plate Based social network go to
www.yourplates.com & www.yourplates.mobi
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Pros
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Just collect them.
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