Smart Cities

Been following the discussions around smart cities for a client and the idea that sensors in buildings will help make cities of the future more efficient. The reality check came to me while walkig through the Amstel metro station yesterday and seeing an operator rebooting a ticket machine. It's using Microsoft Windows 2000 as an operating system. If the city infrsatructure is using software that's from the last century, it's going to be light years before the infrastructure in Amsterdam can catch up with what's being discussed now, especially with what I think is the worst economic recession since the great depression.