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NYPD Is Beta-Testing Google Glass 158

Presto Vivace writes "The New York City Police Department is trying to determine how useful Google Glass would be for law enforcement. From the article: 'The New York City Police Department's massive and controversial intelligence and analytics unit is evaluating whether Google Glass is a decent fit for investigating terrorists and helping cops lock up bad guys, VentureBeat has learned. The department recently received several pairs of the modernist-looking specs to test out. "We signed up, got a few pairs of the Google glasses, and we're trying them out, seeing if they have any value in investigations, mostly for patrol purposes," a ranking New York City law enforcement official told VentureBeat.'"
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NYPD Is Beta-Testing Google Glass

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    • by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:18PM (#46182331)

      I wonder how bad Beta slashdot looks on Google Glass?

      • > I wonder how bad Beta slashdot looks on Google Glass?

        Have you heard the old joke that ends in the phrase, "Coffee break is over; back on your heads."?

        • by lgw ( 121541 )

          That may be the hardest I've ever laughed at a Slashdot post. All my Internets to you, good sir or madam.

      • Well one problem is that about 1/4 is covered by an empty white column.

        • google glass offers only ~20% of usable space for content, so in other words they are match made in heaven

    • by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:27PM (#46182407)

      I think we've all read the "Slashdot Tries Something New; Audience Responds!" [slashdot.org] submission from Timothy at this point.

      I was horrified to read this particular sentence within it:

      Most importantly, we want you to know that Classic Slashdot isn't going away until we're confident that the new site is ready.

      That confirms that Slashdot Classic will in fact be gone at some point. That, of course, also means that it will most likely be replaced with the shitty beta site.

      I had some hope this morning that the complete hatred shown by so many users here would be taken seriously. Clearly, that is not the case. The very valid complaints have been totally ignored.

      The beta site cannot be salvaged. It is so inherently broken that there's no possible way it could ever be ready to replace the Slashdot Classic site, regardless of how much work they put into it.

      I think we should mark today, February 6, 2014, as the day that Slashdot died. This confirmation from Timothy basically guarantees that many of us will be driven away against our will, all due to this shitty, shitty beta site going live. The community just won't survive that, I'm afraid to say.

      • by kbahey ( 102895 )

        Amazing how some people can be totally blind and arrogant, and continue marching to their death like that ...

    • by istartedi ( 132515 ) on Friday February 07, 2014 @12:02AM (#46182641) Journal

      May "olives and feta" be our code for "fuck the beta" going forward. Like, you're in a bar in Palo Alto and somebody mentions how their company is redesigning their site and you go, "so it's olives and feta" and they either know what you're talking about or they don't.

    • I mean the post that timothy had on hearing us is approaching the level of some of the most highly commented discussions on /., and it's going to keep growing. Maybe the editors can show that to their Dice overlords and get them to back the hell off of the aggressive monetizing Beta is and refocus on a way of compromising while still keeping the damn community and not tanking the awesome place that has been /. for so very long
      • by arth1 ( 260657 )

        I mean the post that timothy had on hearing us is approaching the level of some of the most highly commented discussions on /., and it's going to keep growing. Maybe the editors can show that to their Dice overlords and get them to back the hell off of the aggressive monetizing Beta is and refocus on a way of compromising while still keeping the damn community and not tanking the awesome place that has been /. for so very long

        Any compromise that ditches Slashdot classic isn't a compromise.

        There is no sane way to turn the Beta into a working system - it cannot be done incrementally, because it's so fundamentally different.
        The only compromise that could work would be to support both interfaces. Which the powers that be are not interested in doing - they must have an awful lot of face invested, when they're willing to let their jobs go down the drain rather than admit failure.

        Polish the turd all you want, but it's not going to bec

      • by ubrgeek ( 679399 )
        Sure, they're hearing us. So is Congress. They just don't care what we're saying.
    • by flyneye ( 84093 )

      Youre right.
      Giving cops Google glasses will only encourage the smart ones to abuse their abilities and the dumb ones to hang clip-ons on them.
      But I couldnt have read about it on my not-so-smart-but-more-secure phone, because BETA looks like garbled ass on it.

  • ,,,Slashdot's Beta?

  • by Anachragnome ( 1008495 ) on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:24PM (#46182393)

    US5722418

    +

    US5644363

    +

    GoogleGlass

    +

    Acceptance

    =

    ????

  • to tell the officer exactly how far to shove the toilet plunger up the suspects ass during an interrogation? Point out the locations of local mosques for illegal surveillance? Figure out which community to target the illegal stop and frisk campaign on next?

  • Slashcott (Score:4, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:29PM (#46182423)

    Please post this to new articles if it hasn't been posted yet.

    On February 5, 2014, Slashdot announced through a javascript popup that they are starting to "move in to" the new Slashdot Beta design.

    Slashdot Beta is a trend-following attempt to give Slashdot a fresh look, an approach that has led to less space for text and an abandonment of the traditional Slashdot look. Much worse than that, Slashdot Beta fundamentally breaks [reddit.com] the classic Slashdot discussion and moderation system. If you haven't seen Slashdot Beta already, open this [slashdot.org] in a new tab. After seeing that, click here [slashdot.org] to return to classic Slashdot.

    We should boycott stories and only discuss the abomination that is Slashdot Beta until Dice abandons the project.

    We should boycott slashdot entirely during the week of Feb 10 to Feb 17 as part of the wider slashcott [slashdot.org]

    Moderators - only spend mod points on comments that discuss Beta
    Commentors - only discuss Beta
    http://slashdot.org/recent [slashdot.org] [slashdot.org] - Vote up the Fuck Beta stories

    Keep this up for a few days and we may finally get the PHBs attention. Links of note:

    Discussion of Beta: http://slashdot.org/firehose.pl?op=view&id=56395415 [slashdot.org]
    Discussion of where to go if Beta goes live: http://slashdot.org/firehose.pl?op=view&type=submission&id=3321441 [slashdot.org]
    Alternative Slashdot: altslashdot.org [altslashdot.org]
    IRC Discussion: slashnet.org #slashdot

    Marked-up text for this comment: http://pastebin.com/mc2rhHBh [pastebin.com]

  • by QuietLagoon ( 813062 ) on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:29PM (#46182427)
    ... destroy one of the major melting pots of the global technology industry?

    .
    Who, in their right mind, would want to destroy the cross-pollination of innovation within the global technology industry?

    Dice, do you have the slightest inkling of what you are about to destroy?

    • Sadly, I think I've figured it out.

      - Ubuntu did it with Gnome 3.
      - Microsoft did it with Windows 8.
      - Numerous sites have done it by forcing facebook login to leave comments, by auto-refreshing & forcing Javascript, and by turning web pages into never-ending feeds (e.g. lifehacker.com's home page).
      - Now slashdot is doing it.

      Doing what? Getting rid of the gray beards.

      There is no money to be sucked from bright bulbs. Those who only want to facebook will carry on like nothing has happened. And ul
      • To me, the closest analog is D&D 4th Edition; change everything, explicitly fuck the old guard, hope-and-pray for a rain newbies.

        One year later, and thereafter: over half their customer base is gone, and the Pathfinder game is top of the heap.

        But then I'm a D&D geek and probably Dice doesn't want me around anymore, either.

      • Doing what? Getting rid of the gray beards.

        gray beards you say? perhaps the /. user base just isn't shouting loud enough.

    • Someone who can make money (or avoid losing money) by destroying it.
    • "Dice, do you have the slightest inkling of what you are about to destroy?"

      Yes, they know exactly what they are about to destroy.

  • We have always been at war with your beta.

  • No Classic UI (Score:4, Informative)

    by Misanthrope ( 49269 ) on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:34PM (#46182461)

    I've been reading /. since '98, without the classic UI as an option you have lost me as a user. I will participate in the upcoming boycott.

  • You do something wrong? Cop has video of it.
    Cop does something wrong? "Well, I was chasing the suspect and my Google Glass fell off, so I don't have footage of the event. I have NO idea how he fell down and broke both arms, both legs (multiple fractures each), and caved his own skull in so he can't testify...err...caved his own skull in..."

    • by beckett ( 27524 )

      "Well, I was chasing the suspect and my Google Glass fell off, so I don't have footage of the event. I have NO idea how he fell down and broke both arms, both legs (multiple fractures each), and caved his own skull in so he can't testify...err...caved his own skull in..."

      sounds like the slashdot beta experience.

  • by sandbagger ( 654585 ) on Thursday February 06, 2014 @11:45PM (#46182555)

    Several police forces have been hammering people who record police with wiretapping charges. Eventually wearable computers with 3/4G will be commonplace. I am sure that wearable video will help knock down frivolous complaints against police officers for misconduct and will sometimes magically be corrupted when recordings might prove wrongdoing.

    However, eventually there will be so many people wearing so many video cameras it'll be impossible for bad apples to say all of the independently recorded videos magically were deleted or got corrupted on the floppy disc. And there will be so many citizens wearing cameras that there will be too many SD cards to confiscate.

    A large enough difference in degree becomes a difference in kind. I think digital video will have as large an impact on policing as the telephone and radio. If you've been following, there was a constable in the UK who basically can be seen lying on camera about smelling alcohol on a protester's breath. (Google it, it's all over LiveLeak.) Guys like this will -- one hopes -- get cashiered. Baddies who hope to win the lawsuit lottery by inventing abuse should also expect to have a hard time.

    Of course, police have become used to yelling 'Stop resisting' when handcuffing in case they're being videotaped so the Darwinian behavioural game continues.

    • I agree that Beta sucks - good point.
    • Pretty sure all of the wiretapping charges have been dropped by courts, sometimes with the police facing nice juicy fines.

      I look forward to the day when the police confiscate my phone so I can get back 40k or so, I back up my phone and photo/video goes up to the network so have fun with the locked phone jackboots (a term I reserve for those police stupid enough to confiscate recording equipment).

      • by tftp ( 111690 )

        I look forward to the day when the police confiscate my phone so I can get back 40k or so

        I hope this will be enough to cover new front teeth, and the discomfort that you will experience when a JBT kicks them out for you. The city may pay you $40K later, if you are lucky. However the "officer" on steroids will not be punished; he will be free to continue his "activities."

        The dental chair is not the worst that can happen to you. Police can charge you with any number of imaginary violations, such as "obst

        • Many of them carry bags with drugs and "spare" drop guns. If need arises, those items will be "found" on you.

          What percentage of cops, do YOU think are walking around with spare drop guns and extra bags of drugs?

          • by tftp ( 111690 )

            Maybe 10% ? There is no way to find out. Even 10% is too many if the encounter means your conviction. Some departments are 100% honest; other are 100% corrupted. LEOs are routinely lying in court; from that it's one small step to planting evidence.

            It doesn't always mean that they are rotten to the core. They simply may want to have an insurance against an error in judgement. (For example, after a chase a cop shoots a drug dealer; then he discovers that the dealer was unarmed. Well, not anymore...) Even a

            • I find the notion that somewhere near 10% of all cops are waiting in the wings with bags of drugs and spare guns waiting to plant them on people, and the idea that LEO's perjuring themselves is "routine" to be almost tinfoil-hat worthy.

              It's not fashionable to say here, but Io think the overwhelming majority of police are honest, hard-working people looking to serve the public interest. While I suspect there are those who get off on their position, I think most don't get off it on it much more than I "get o

              • by tftp ( 111690 )

                I find the notion that somewhere near 10% of all cops are waiting in the wings with bags of drugs and spare guns waiting to plant them on people, and the idea that LEO's perjuring themselves is "routine" to be almost tinfoil-hat worthy.

                It's simply Pascal's Wager.

                It's not fashionable to say here, but Io think the overwhelming majority of police are honest, hard-working people looking to serve the public interest.

                I have met very few police officers in my life, and they all appear to be good people. How

                • While your math is correct, I simply reject the premise that 10% of cops are holding bags of drugs to sprinkle over people in case of screwups.

  • by Nightbrood ( 6060 ) on Friday February 07, 2014 @12:01AM (#46182631)

    DICE, the community is trying to tell you something. We hope you are listening. This Slash Beta idea you all got obsessed with rolling out is a REALLY bad idea. You obviously tried pencil whip the user feedback portion of your launch plan otherwise the comment system wouldn't have devolved into an outright revolt against the Beta in EVERY. SINGLE. STORY. you have posted today.

    Additionally, you should keep in mind that while we love Slashdot, we recognize all good things must come to and end. If this is what you want to do, then do it. However, don't expect a large portion of the community to follow you down that path. I know this because they have told you ALL DAY. I know this because this community, unlike many others, is made up of the people who have the skills and abilities to REPLACE you. I know they will replace you because you've made them passionate about the cause. Even I, a 4 digit UID and pro-lurker, am fired up enough to post! Fix this guys or the community will fix it for you.

    #IamSlashdot

    • Hey, do you not think Slashdot has probably got the message now, what with endless thread hijacking and the 800+ comment story where they specifically asked for feedback?

      To bring this back on topic, you posting about beta now is ever bit as much an asshole move as wearing Glass into someplace people don't want photos.

      #IAmAPersonWhoWantsToReadFuckingTopicalCommentsNotYourPettyVendetta

      • Well, be sure to turn out the lights then. Because once the "Just Another Wordpress" site theme is launched and the comments section, the unique feature that makes Slashdot, as we know it is gone. At that point I'll wait and see where the community migrates to and follow suite. Maybe someone will download Slashcode and attempt to launch a new site. Hell it was a good run. But all good things...

      • Well, true enough, this persistent complaining about beta is annoying, but then again beta indeed is worse than OMG Ponies Slashdot. This complaining is akin to a strike, and supposed to be annoying.

        • It's not annoying to the people that matter! It's only annoying the readers you morons.

          In fact, do to incessant whining I've decided I really like Beta quite a bit and can we keep it just as it is? I'm going to fight hard for Beta now just because I know it pisses you off.

          • In fact, do to incessant whining I've decided I really like Beta quite a bit and can we keep it just as it is? I'm going to fight hard for Beta now just because I know it pisses you off.

            I already responded once to you but I had to reply to this comment: I'm in support of both the beta and the classic. I personally hate the beta and prefer the classic, but there is no technological reason why they can't run side by side. I know there are some people who like the beta. That's ok. It's their cup of tea. There is no reason why either needs to be taken away.

            Before you say I'm contradicting myself in my signature, I'll also say that I merely picked up the "Fuck Beta" line because it was bei

      • by PGC ( 880972 )
        Seeing the message they posted: NO.
      • Consider this: if beta worked, you could just close the "petty vendettas" easily. (It's one of the things we're complaining about.) Most of the threads spawned pretty much had separate threads for beta and on-topic stories. I thought that separation was pretty amazing considering no one organized that. Yes, there were cross overs, but it wasn't that bad.

        No matter what, I think you'll get your wish in a day or two and you can be happy. There's going to be a boycott and you can read your articles without

  • Improvements cannot be made on an already broken design. Please trash it for good.
  • When a roided-up big city cop puts on Glass, physicists are not sure what effect such concentrated arrogance might have on surrounding matter. Such experiments should be conducted out in the Oort cloud, where the effects on Earth should be minimal.
  • I think one of the things I really like about the NYPD is that they don't call us New Yorkers their "audience". On the side of the cars they have the words "Community Professionalism Respect".
    • by arth1 ( 260657 )

      I think one of the things I really like about the NYPD is that they don't call us New Yorkers their "audience". On the side of the cars they have the words "Community Professionalism Respect".

      What happened to "To Protect and Serve"?
      Too many invitations to tennis matches?

  • It's important to note.. that beta blows.. it's really not good, if you're not improving the site then wtf are you doing?
  • I'm betting that we'll see for the first time just how unreliable the storage is on google glasses. Just wait until somebody requests footage and see how fast the "malfunctions" start occurring.
  • Very nice blog thanks for share each other www.cloudwalks.com
  • wearing these? And will they be liable if they are involved in a crash while driving distracted by same?

  • The primary activity of beat cops is neither tracking down bad guys nor preventing terrorism, but dealing with drunks.

  • I'm loving the beta! Good job guys; beautiful, sleek, modern look, and it works great! #fuckfuckbeta
  • Google Glass will suck. Here's a typical use case:

    Judge: Did Google Glass record the encounter?

    NYPD Official: Yes, Your Honor.

    Judge: Present that as evidence.

    NYPD Official: Ok, I...oh. There was a technical failure -- it's gone!

  • What will be the focus in augmenting the police officer in this way? Facial recognition, license plate recognition, voice recognition, and easier maintenance of dossiers on private citizens come to mind. Feeding camera video of fleeing suspects, floor plans of houses and apartment buildings, and outstanding warrant information directly to officers already lawfully interacting with people does too. This has great promise but comes with a great threat of misuse.

  • It's not like recording how stupid and law-breaking the police are will suddenly make the union allow the NYPD to fire them. They'll just whine about monitoring and blah blah blah. It's the same old bullshit as keeping bad teachers around.
  • Will they be driving while using those? Wasn't someone arrested for wearing them? Of course they're cops so the laws don't apply the same...

  • Now I can watch the Mets/Reds game while writing tickets!
  • Seriously, I want to see this become an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I feel quite confident that the writers of that show can come up with every possible stupid result of cops using Google Glass.
  • Just came back here for sh*ts and giggles after approx 8 years. Checked out the beta site. Immediately my whole being relaxed. I could finally read the stories, enjoy the comments. Its so much cleaner and clearer and than before. I'd say to the current owners of Slashdot. Make the change. Quickly. Some of the neck-beards here would like you to run an ad-free site that looks like a circa 1985 newsgroup, while you keep taking fistfuls of money out of your wallet to run the servers and pay the employees

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