ON THE CUTTING EDGE: Technology Is No Replacement For Common Sense
Responding to parents’ concerns about their kids chatting or texting on their cell phones while driving, entrepreneurs are trying to devise gizmos that would make this safety hazard impossible, reports The Washington Post, but none of them are ready for prime time:
One product to hit the market, $10-a-month software by Dallas-based WQN Inc., can disable a cell phone while its owner is driving. It uses GPS technology, which can tell how fast a person is traveling. But it can't know whether the person is driving - and therefore it can needlessly lock a phone. …
Aegis Mobility … plans to release a similar Global Positioning System-based product this fall, known as DriveAssistT. Aegis is in talks with big U.S. wireless phone carriers, which would have to support the software … [that] will disable a phone at driving speeds and send a message to callers or texters saying the person they are trying to reach is too busy driving. But because that person could be a non-driving passenger, the approach is a blunt tool.
Parry Aftab, executive director of WiredSafety.org, has a simpler - and foolproof – solution: take away the cell phone if it proves too great a temptation for a young driver.
Considering that the National Safety Council is advising a nationwide ban on cell phone use while driving - the problem isn’t just hands off the wheel, it’s attention on the conversation - The Stiletto wishes that parents would practice what they preach.
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