Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by mindslight 1410 days ago
> Rolling out updates in this way provides a major advantage In terms of QA testing: they can start a new software update out on employee cars, then move to maybe a few thousand owners to get initial thoughts on the update

Maybe I'm just old fashioned, but I believe in doing the QA before you ship the code. Especially for safety critical code. "Move fast and break things" was cute when it was just for some upstart entertainment company, but is straight up professional malpractice for any product that is expected to be reliable.

Lack of centralizing connectivity was actually a beneficial constraint for most contexts. If a car model's software is found to have a safety critical bug that needs fixing, the recall process of making cars go back to the dealer should be regarded as a small price compared to the gravity of the mistake.
1 comments
standyro 1410 days ago
The Tesla Model 3/y infotainment system that's often updated by over the air updates isn't "safety critical" code. You can drive the car without the infotainment system and screen even on. There is a completely separate system that goes through a much more rigorous process.

And Tesla has incredible reliability for how complex the software is (in my opinion). They actually fix bugs. I had weird issues with Bluetooth and the radio on my Honda that were never fixed the entire time I've owned the car.

I've seen newer Mustang Mach-Es and Volkswagen iD cars that have really severe issues in their UI.

link
mindslight 1410 days ago
The comment I responded to was talking about safety critical systems:

> This is especially important given the update system in the car isn't limited to just the infotainment, pretty much every software system in the car can be updated during an OTA update, including the battery management system, ABS, safety systems

Also, I'd say that even the entertainment system is still safety relevant. Arbitrarily changing the UI on something that is meant to be used while driving is a terrible idea. At the very least, whether and when those changes are applied should be under control of the owner and able to be rolled back. Surprises like needing to figure out how to turn on the defrost kill a driver's OODA loop.

link