Welcome
Steve, o Steve
A recent article in several popular news sources recounts the story of a security robot at The Washington Harbour commercial district, affectionately called Steve, that drove itself into a water fountain. The water feature is at the bottom of a few short steps that start at floor level – without a planter or bench to serve as a casual barricade. The poor little robot was just rolling along, watching things, and the floor dropped out from under it.
Dear Reader,
A recent article in several popular news sources recounts the story of a security robot at The Washington Harbour commercial district, affectionately called Steve, that drove itself into a water fountain. The water feature is at the bottom of a few short steps that start at floor level – without a planter or bench to serve as a casual barricade. The poor little robot was just rolling along, watching things, and the floor dropped out from under it. I wonder if any sight-impaired people have fallen at this spot, although a well-handled cane would presumably give some indication of a change in the vertical dimension. I also wonder if a clear-sighted but absent-minded pedestrian with a tendency to look in all directions and not necessarily straight ahead (like the author of this column) could have eventually fallen prey to the same water trap.
The picture accompanying the article shows the robot, which has a tin-can-like R2D2 morphology, "face" down in the water, attended by a maintenance official, with a few shoppers gathered around snapping pictures. I felt a certain kinship with the robot, knowing that it could have been me.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
System76 Releases COSMIC Alpha 7
With scores of bug fixes and a really cool workspaces feature, COSMIC is looking to soon migrate from alpha to beta.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 6.0 Available for Installation
The latest release of OpenMandriva has arrived with a new kernel, an updated Plasma desktop, and a server edition.
-
TrueNAS 25.04 Arrives with Thousands of Changes
One of the most popular Linux-based NAS solutions has rolled out the latest edition, based on Ubuntu 25.04.
-
Fedora 42 Available with Two New Spins
The latest release from the Fedora Project includes the usual updates, a new kernel, an official KDE Plasma spin, and a new System76 spin.
-
So Long, ArcoLinux
The ArcoLinux distribution is the latest Linux distribution to shut down.
-
What Open Source Pros Look for in a Job Role
Learn what professionals in technical and non-technical roles say is most important when seeking a new position.
-
Asahi Linux Runs into Issues with M4 Support
Due to Apple Silicon changes, the Asahi Linux project is at odds with adding support for the M4 chips.
-
Plasma 6.3.4 Now Available
Although not a major release, Plasma 6.3.4 does fix some bugs and offer a subtle change for the Plasma sidebar.
-
Linux Kernel 6.15 First Release Candidate Now Available
Linux Torvalds has announced that the release candidate for the final release of the Linux 6.15 series is now available.
-
Akamai Will Host kernel.org
The organization dedicated to cloud-based solutions has agreed to host kernel.org to deliver long-term stability for the development team.