Software is your friend, but it doesn’t have to be. The latest proof that the anarchy of our thrilling Internet experiment is transitioning to the tactile world is a firearm that uses Wi-Fi to let anyone strike targets with accuracy from more than half a mile away. You don’t even have to decide when to pull the trigger. We’ve thought of everything. From Liat Clark at Wired UK:

“A Texas company has begun shipping a rifle equipped with ‘fighter jet-style lock-and-launch technology” that allows amateurs to hit targets up to one kilometre away, every time.

Any potential threats posed by Cody Wilson’s 3D-printed gun pale in comparison to TrackingPoint’s Precision-Guided Firearm (PGF), a series of three firarms that offer tracking ranges of 1,100m, 915m and 777m. ‘Even a novice shooter can become an elite long-range marksman in minutes, accurately and effectively engaging targets,’ boasts the company press release.

The recreational bolt-action rifle came about when founder John McHale grew frustrated when game-hunting in Tanzania in 2009. He found it impossible to calculate all the variables in time to accurately hit a Thomson’s gazelle, which can run at speeds of up to 94km/h. By 2010 he had an initial prototype. Its features are impressive — it has a laser rangefinder and environmental sensors to pick up things like pressure, wind speed and temperature. Meanwhile, the Linux-powered digital tracking scope has a display that features data including the rifle’s incline (inertial sensors are inbuilt) and a compass. Users can click a small tag button alongside the trigger to ‘mark’ it, then the device does its magic. Taking into account all the variables, from range to humidity, it uses image recognition to mark the target and shows the user where a bullet will realistically land. At this point the trigger is squeezed, which highlights the crosshairs in red and allows the user to align it with the desired mark — only when the two have been aligned will the gun actually go off. The inbuilt computer is deciding when to take the shot, not the marksman.”