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Which under-the-radar area of software development do you think deserves more attention? What about embedded systems? Do people still program in assembly these days?

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Member Avatar for Reverend Jim

Security in IoT devices. From what I've read they are still woefully easy to hack. We have even seen devices like baby monitors, embedded defibrillators, and pacemakers hacked remotely. This is unacceptable.

Less reliance on the internet (see next point as well). If I install a security camera at my house I don't want my video going into the cloud. I want to be the only one who has access to the video. I would like to wi-fi the video to my home computer without going through an online server.

Stand-alone availability. Smart Beds by Eight Sleep were recently rendered useless because of an Amazon Web Services outage. Beds were locked in the inclined position and temperature controls went ca-ca. If a device operates only when the internet is available it has a bad design. Imagine if all of our Windows PCs required a Microsoft Account (they keep pushing it) and stopped working during an internet outage. You can (for now at least) still install Windows 11 with only a local account but you have to be a little tech savvy.

No requirement for a Smart Phone to operate, and better interoperability. I just got new hearing aids and a kick-ass 65" LG TV. Both have Bluetooth, as does my laptop, but none of the devices are compatible. I had to spend an extra $350 for a box half the size of a deck of cards (probably has 2-3 chips max) to stream audio from the TV to my hearing aids. And it requires a smart phone to connect and configure. AND it keeps dropping the connection. If I didn't already have the phone I would have had to spend even more money just to get the TV Bluetooth to talk to my hearing aids. And they still don't connect to my laptop. That requires a new computer (OK, I wanted that anyway) and there is no guarantee THAT will be compatible.

Assembly? I can't imagine anyone still does that. I spent years doing that and would never do it again by choice. And I make a lot of stuff from scratch (corned beef, sauerbraten, salad dressings, horseradish, sauces). But hand-bombing assembler? No thanks. Even Arduino uses a version of C.

Edited by Reverend Jim
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Yeah, I was just thinking about that. So many devices I have require Internet connections for absolutely no reason. Yesterday I just bought a radon monitor that requires an app.

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I would also like to abolish the trend that every store I shop at wants me to install their shitty app on my phone. They want me to use my phone to get discounts. They want me to use my phone to pay for stuff. My phone has a built-in browser app. Make a web app and give me the link but don't ask me to pollute my phone with poorly designed software whose major function is likely to stream ads at me.

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I know, I know. Grumpy old man.

Member Avatar for Minimalist

Yeah, I was just thinking about that. So many devices I have require Internet connections for absolutely no reason. Yesterday I just bought a radon monitor that requires an app.

The worst example of this internet connection requirement I experienced with a hp printer that needed an internet connection for the simplest printing requirements. What a rubbish and it went into the bin.

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