Rolo was on the right track...
It was actually a gas pump, and it is made by Microsoft.
Microsoft Gas Pump Prototype
That company never ceases to underwhelm me.
EDIT: The LeftLaneNews (from the macnn folks) link above seems to work squirrely in Safari. You can go to this page News and look for the Microsoft Gas Pump story.
Microsoft Gas Pump Prototype
That company never ceases to underwhelm me.
EDIT: The LeftLaneNews (from the macnn folks) link above seems to work squirrely in Safari. You can go to this page News and look for the Microsoft Gas Pump story.
Comments
Originally posted by kim kap sol
Is this a joke?
Sadly, no:
Press Release
Gotta go. My favorite TV program starts in 3 minutes.
As if the gas companies can't find better ways to waste energy.
I remember a time when gas stations were "full serve."
Originally posted by Bergermeister
Couldn't people effectively use that 5 minutes by THINKING or DAYDREAMING? Both of these are more important than having some stoooooopid box pander to us.
Gotta go. My favorite TV program starts in 3 minutes.
Can that stat really be correct? 5 minutes a day pumping gas? I believe I spend less than 5 minutes a week pumping gas.
Apple is trying to get the ipod and the Appleness into cars and MS
just wants to stick it in the orifice!!
great!
Originally posted by atomicham
Sadly, no:
Press Release
Hey...if it bluescreens after I scan my card (after fillup) but before the payment is complete, and I leave....am I a criminal?
Originally posted by hmmfe
Can that stat really be correct? 5 minutes a day pumping gas? I believe I spend less than 5 minutes a week pumping gas.
Depends on where you live. Some places (particularly in North America) basically force you to drive everywhere and the distances can be considerable. It wouldn't surprise me at all if people in this areas spend at least 5 minutes/day pumping gas.
Originally posted by Programmer
Depends on where you live. Some places (particularly in North America) basically force you to drive everywhere and the distances can be considerable. It wouldn't surprise me at all if people in this areas spend at least 5 minutes/day pumping gas.
Well, being a lifelong resident of North America - I appreciate the amount of driving necessary. I just filled up today and it took about 4 minutes to swipe the card, fill the tank, wash the windshield (while I was fueling), replace the cap, grab the receipt, and get back into the car. I have a 20 gallon tank so I am guessing that for a lot of people this time would actually be less (and for those driving land yachts maybe a bit more). I guess the point being I find it hard to believe that the average american is filling their tanks every day.
A quick google search showed that the average american drives anywhere from 29-45 miles per day. The average fuel economy is 23-24.5 mpg. So, worst case scenario is that the average american burns about 2 gallons of gas per day. Let's up that by 50% to be safe and say 3 gallons per day.
Let's also assume that the average size of a gas tank is 10 gallons (most likely this is a bit higher). One big assumption here is that people fill their tanks when they visit the gas station. I do remember in my younger days having to put 2 bucks in the tank so I had enough $$ to eat that night. Assumptions aside, the average would be a visit to the gas station every 3.3 days. To spend 5mins/day, the average visit would be 16.5 minutes.
The EPA limits the rate of gas pumping to 10 gal/min. Let's say the actual average rate is 5 gal/min. That would mean that it takes 2 minutes to pump gas and fill a 10 gallon tank.
What in the heck are people doing the other 14.5 minutes? I do realize that there are people that might spend this much time at the pump per day, but we're talking averages.
[i]What in the heck are people doing the other 14.5 minutes? [/B]
Listening to my iPod?
Originally posted by hmmfe
The average fuel economy is 23-24.5 mpg.
That is so depressing.
Originally posted by Cory Bauer
That is so depressing.
I wish I got that kind of mileage.
Originally posted by hmmfe
Can that stat really be correct? 5 minutes a day pumping gas? I believe I spend less than 5 minutes a week pumping gas.
Must be based on those who own SUVs I guess.
Originally posted by TednDi
Listening to my iPod?
So that is you I am always waiting behind at the gas station.
Originally posted by Cory Bauer
That is so depressing.
While googling that little tidbit, I discovered that the average fuel economy has gone down in recent years. It is depresing that this country can't get its act together.
Originally posted by hmmfe
So that is you I am always waiting behind at the gas station.
Yup!