I had started writing a more serious post about programming when I came across this story. Maybe you've heard it already. But in case you missed it at the time (as I did), it's a wonderful and true story from the world of IoT.
Some buzzwords are real
You've heard the term 4IR: the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
At first I was a bit skeptical about the term. Especially when you hear it from government ministers who use IT terms they don't understand. "Revolution" is such a big word. But the reality is that computers are disrupting the way almost every industry in the world works. So, yes, 4IR is real.
Computers are everywhere: on our desks, in our cars, in our houses and in our favourite shopping malls.
A side note: This is why programmers are powerful, and good coding skills are so important. I emphasised this in my webinar last year on "Programmers, Power and Responsibility".
Enter the Internet of Things, or IoT. All those connected devices that make the smart home possible.
The microwave identity crisis
In March 2022, owners of a certain model of AEG microwave couldn't use their appliance for a few weeks.
This smart, internet-connected microwave had received the wrong software update. As a result, the microwave thought it was a steam oven. Unfortunately, the steam oven software couldn't do much with the microwave oven hardware. It would be a bit like thinking you are a bird and trying to fly - but you don't have wings.
To make things worse, the error damaged the network functionality. So the manufacturer couldn't re-push the right software to the microwave ovens. Technicians had to visit owners to fix the problem.
The cause of the problem: an employee manually entered a wrong number somewhere.
I don't know if this affected many people in South Africa. I couldn't find this model (AEG KMK968000T) in local online stores. So your microwave probably doesn't need therapy yet.
My question
I'd love a Transformer-type microwave that turns into a robot and fetches and cooks the food. But that's not here yet. So my question is: Why does anyone need a smart microwave?
What do you think? Do you remotely access your microwave? I'd love to hear your comments.