Engineering For Security
Excellent editorial! ["Let's Engineer Terrorism Out Of The Skies," Oct. 15, p. 24] I have wondered for years why airplanes are allowed to fly into mountains when it would be fairly simple, with GPS, to prevent them from doing so, or at least warn the pilots in time for evasive action. Even something as simple as my $250 DeLorme 3D Topo software and GPS receiver could provide situational awareness. Surely airplanes, especially the Airbus fly-by-wire planes, could be programmed to avoid certain locations.
Jim Turner
Computer Logging Inc.
Regarding "Let's Engineer Terrorism Out Of The Skies," I have a better suggestion. Let's engineer terrorism out, period. Americans represent only four out of every 100 residents of our tiny planet. We need to give more respect to the needs of the other 96. Specifically with regard to the circulation of Electronic Design, how many readers are engaged in activities that benefit the other 96, and how many cause displeasure? How many are de-livering advances in medicine versus advances in arms?
Rather than using our technology to thwart hijackings, let's use it to provide enough wholesome food and pure water and decent shelter throughout the world. We have im-mense engineering capability in this country, but too much goes into the weapons of war rather than the building blocks of peace and prosperity.
I certainly agree we should "harness sophisticated technology and put it to work to keep us safe." Is there any better way to keep us safe than removing the causes of terrorism? Let's focus our technology on positive long-term solutions, and engineer terrorism out. Period.
Darryl Phillips
AirSport Corp.
In response to your question about whether consumers will pay for Digital Radio Service, I think it will be a matter of offering an appealing format ["Digital Audio Broadcasting: A New Frontier," Sept. 17, p. 50]. Like Digital Video, I don't think dissatisfaction with the current transmission system will sell subscribers. It's a content question, not a technical question to me.
I have no problem with the audio quality available from standard FM Stereo, but the programming is horrible. I would pay money to hear music in the morning on my way to work. I am completely sick of the three idiots in the morning format that is ubiquitous in this country. Virtually every station has some variant this format; the smaller stations can only afford two idiots in the morning, but it doesn't help. Country stations, top forty, new music, it's the same story. It has gotten to the point that I rarely turn on the radio anymore, and if I do, I channel surf to get as much music as possible, turning the radio off when there is no music to be found.
If a subscription audio service offered DJ free, commercial free, music, I would pay money for it. National news would be acceptable, maybe on an hourly basis.
Bob Harbour
As a consumer, I for one will not pay for broadcast digital audio services. I have seen the destruction of "community area TV with movies" over the years. At first in the early '70's, I hooked up to cable TV. I got a few local channels and a pay service for movies called HBO. It only cost about $5 per month. It was ok.
At some time according to the little brochure they sent around a movie would start. When it was over there was dead air until the next movie came on. I liked that.
In my area today, the cable services are a joke. The minimum service is about $27 for local channels and some basic cable services, all with commercials. The quality is so poor with crossmodulation and leakage or ghosting that it's barely watchable. The so called "premium cable channels" like Discovery, the Learning Channel, and most others started out ok. No commercials and you paid the cable company $10 or so to get them. Now they all have commercials. What's the point? The movie channels are terrible too. I want to see the movie from beginning to end with no cutoffs in the beginning or end for the cable company to try to get you to keep watching or get in a commercial for some other movie or service. Now the end of the movie with credits is destroyed by having an unreadable two page thing with ads on one side and the movie credits on the other side. On top of that they are always showing their little logo in the bottom right of the screen to ruin the movie and take away what I want to see—the movie alone from beginning to end.
So I fear the same with audio. I can't support it with a fee. The commercials will always slip in and the service will be destroyed and they will charge you a fee to get it. If it's broadcast, it must be free with commercials paying the way.
Roger D. Sheppard
Engineer/Scientist
Agilent Technologies
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