There's Now an Automotive Grade Linux for Open Source Cars

[ZLoth]

From Gizmodo:

There's Now an Automotive Grade Linux for Open Source Cars

There's no denying your car's dashboard is pretty dumb, which is why Microsoft, Apple and Google are all trying to smarten it up. But there's also a new open source source alternative, in the shape of Automotive Grade Linux.

AGL is a Linux distribution tailored for cars , and it's a collaborative project between the Linux Foundation and a wide-ranging list of companies in the automotive industry, including Jaguar Land Rover, Toyota and Nissan. The first release, now available for free online, is based on Tizen IVI–which is famously used in some phones, but also appears in TVs and some cars already.

FULL ARTICLE HERE

[doorknob60]

What would be nice is to choose my Car's dashboard OS separately from the auto manufacturer. Not going to happen though. If a car I want comes with Apple's OS, I'm SOL unless I want to replace the entire unit. Luckily (I guess), I don't have the money to buy a new car with these fancy features. Give me FM Radio and an Aux in (or tape deck with adapter) and I'm good to go.

[bugo]

I want a car with a plain old radio and knobs controlling the HVAC.  I don't want a GPS, or a TV screen, or sync, or any of that bullshit.  I can operate my current car by feel, and I don't want to be any more distracted than I already am.

[ZLoth]

I want a car with a plain old radio and knobs controlling the HVAC.  I don't want a GPS, or a TV screen, or sync, or any of that bullshit.  I can operate my current car by feel, and I don't want to be any more distracted than I already am.

I disagree with you up to a certain point. I don't want a "plain old radio". I want to be able to integrate my cell phone with my car radio either through Bluetooth (preferred) or aux audio input so that I can listen to stored MP3 files, audiobooks, or streaming media stations which has the music that I like instead of the commercial-filled radio that the mega-corporations think that, based upon the demographicss, I should like. I prefer classical music, opera, some jazz, soundtracks, and big band over some of the stuff they call "music". (In my opinion).

In-car GPS, on the other hand, I can somewhat understand. I had a friend who had a in-car GPS system. The cost of upgrading the GPS maps would have been $500, while a external Garmin unit cost less than $200, and that's cheaper now because of the up-to-date GPS maps that is delivered through the data networks. I know that have a anti-GPS sentiment. I consider GPS to be a tool, not gospel, and I make sure the data files are up to date.

And, what's wrong with storing the vehicle telemetry into a in-vehicle database? Combine that was getting the timestamp from GPS, and your car repair man can look at the logs seeing what the faults are, leading to better vehicle diagnosis, especially when the issue occurs only under certain conditions.

[bugo]

I want a car with a plain old radio and knobs controlling the HVAC.  I don't want a GPS, or a TV screen, or sync, or any of that bullshit.  I can operate my current car by feel, and I don't want to be any more distracted than I already am.

I disagree with you up to a certain point. I don't want a "plain old radio". I want to be able to integrate my cell phone with my car radio either through Bluetooth (preferred) or aux audio input so that I can listen to stored MP3 files, audiobooks, or streaming media stations which has the music that I like instead of the commercial-filled radio that the mega-corporations think that, based upon the demographicss, I should like. I prefer classical music, opera, some jazz, soundtracks, and big band over some of the stuff they call "music". (In my opinion).

Give me an aux input jack and I'm happy.  The touch screens are distracting and give no tactile feedback.  A volume knob and HVAC knobs are easy to operate by touch.

And, what's wrong with storing the vehicle telemetry into a in-vehicle database? Combine that was getting the timestamp from GPS, and your car repair man can look at the logs seeing what the faults are, leading to better vehicle diagnosis, especially when the issue occurs only under certain conditions.

The more complex the machine, the more there is to go wrong.  My car doesn't even have power windows and I like it that way.

[Scott5114]

Aux input does the job, but I've rented a car with a touchscreen and USB input, and it is a lot easier to skip songs using the car's touchscreen than it is to fumble with the phone touchscreen while you're driving. Other than that, standard controls are probably easier to operate.

[ZLoth]

Thats when a well-intergrated Bluetooth system is better than a Aux input. The controls from my car controls my phone which allows me to pause/resume my audiobook playback. I have to try the skip controls when I play music.

[vdeane]

When I need music other than the radio (mainly by traveling outside the I-90 corridor for which I have presets from Rochester to Albany), I use my third generation iPod nano.  No touch screen for skipping songs there.