A reboot might not suffice in a driverless car

Over the years, computers have been a big part of all of our lives, and we’ve learned to live with their quirks and foibles, their temperament and tricks, such as shutting down or going off track with no warning. And, more important, we learned to avoid the tricks of hackers who try to get into our computers, for their benefit.

We have learned, probably by trial and error, to temporarily fix some problem so that we can continue with our lives. Sometimes the problem can be solved, but in many case, I’ve pushed buttons and fixed the problem with no idea how I fixed it.

Recently, my computer has locked me out. I resort to the old “Ctrl/Alt/Delete” method, let it rest for a while and it will usually work as required.

It’s also interesting to be aware of the number of manufactured items in our lives — vehicles, appliances and others — where some form of computerization is involved will shut down or be corrected by a recall when a serious problem is discovered.

Then I think of driverless cars that will be on the road. I’m reminded that with all troubles, recalls, etc., there are people sitting in some transportation mode over which they have not control. They are travelling along at 100 kilometres an hour in a huge computer with four wheels.

Scary, ain’t it? D.F. Connors Nanaimo