When's it okay to use "Auto"?

[disneyboy2003]

I was just watching old episodes of "Knight Rider" on YouTube.

(you can see the option for "Auto" above)
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Is it just me? It seems that every time Michael Knight pressed "Auto", I just CRINGED!

I mean, I know that KITT is a pretty advanced car, and "Auto" seemed to work pretty well during regular daytime driving. However, I'd probably encourage Michael to "steer" away from Auto, especially during low-light or nighttime driving, when things are a lot tougher.

I wonder if Michael should have used "S" for Steering Priority? Or "A" for Accelerator Priority? To me, he seemed to be driving Manual most of the time.

And what software does Bonnie / April use to tweak KITT's program? MotoShop?

And should Michael invest in something more than just the "KITT lens"?

How do I achieve this with my own car:

What settings should I use?
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I think someone recommended "Understanding Acceleration", so I might check this out.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[photo_chick]

If I had a car with superior skills than my human brain I might be inclined to let it take on some of the driving responsibility... Come to think of it I often do with cruise control. But I don't think I could ever hand over total control.

Computers, while great for managing one of the variables when you give it the rest, cannot at this time fully replace the human factor. KITT could because he was an AI and science fiction. He had better creative thinking and analytical skills than his human counterpart. Creative thinking is required for both driving and photography. But if you can lighten your load while still maintaining control, why not?

 

[seashoreCM]

Only in the movies does someone (a character) hit "auto" and gets perfect results every time.

In one show (Smallville, here) someone took a picture with a cell phone and then blew up the picture "several times" and got incredible detail in the portion selected, as if the cell phone camera captured a 200 megapixel image.

Now if only I could push a button and drive out of my narrow driveway and the car would "remember" the path. Then when I return home, I push the button again and the car would automatically back itself back in, following the exact path, without hitting anything.