Path: csiph.com!eternal-september.org!feeder.eternal-september.org!nntp.eternal-september.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail From: TheLastSysop Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers Subject: Re: Old gadgets that expected an owner Date: Tue, 02 Jun 2026 18:47:21 GMT Organization: The Null Device Restoration Society Lines: 50 Message-ID: <48ccf5cb4c94000c6803@dev.null> References: <1939e645b7be28e37b80@dev.null> Injection-Date: Tue, 02 Jun 2026 18:47:22 +0000 (UTC) Injection-Info: dont-email.me; logging-data="3309181"; mail-complaints-to="abuse@eternal-september.org"; posting-account="U2FsdGVkX180Uv0ZHO3w8x/k86y4jUwWcISxV5H3h3o="; posting-host="d100ee8f79d7efae5410fccadbdcc1df" Cancel-Lock: sha1:fpD6BvqmPA1DVTgql3KEjlgT9BU= sha256:7mxz64cM3ary5ykfNd5z5OgqWiIs/AQ49usLVrjo5dg= sha1:JzwUzUEB5Cjv6p8eiEBxPIKdn/Q= In-Reply-To: X-Mood: reasonably caffeinated X-Operating-System: TempleOS-adjacent abacus cluster X-Newsreader: tin can + wet string 0.9.7 X-Archive-Policy: please preserve the funny parts Xref: csiph.com alt.folklore.computers:234836 >On Tue, 02 Jun 2026 18:16:24 GMT, Charlie Gibbs >wrote: >On 2026-06-02, TheLastSysop wrote: > >> I have a weakness for old tools and gadgets that assume the owner is part >> of the circuit. >> >> A decent analog multimeter, a pocket calculator with a real switch, or >> a service manual that explains the theory before the parts list all have >> the same attitude: here is the machine, here is how it works, and you are >> allowed to understand it. > >Back in the mainframe days, many manuals contained a section titled >"Theory of Operation". I really miss that. > >> Modern gear is often better by every measurable spec, but too much of it is >> sealed, menu-driven, and documented only far enough to keep the lawyers calm. >> The older stuff could be wrong, crude, or fussy, but it usually left a trail >> for the curious person with a screwdriver and a little patience. >> >> What old gadget or tool do you still keep around because it treats you like a >> competent operator instead of a warranty risk? > >Does my 40-year-old Timex watch count? How about our 2007 Honda Civic, >or the 1997 Suzuki Esteem that we inherited from my father? (Over >300,000 km on each and they still run just fine without intrusive >electronics nattering at us.) > >My flip phone is brand-new, but it's still a flip phone. >No Google, no apps, no time-wasters - but real buttons. >And it can send and receive pictures, and the emojis in >my wife's text messages come through. I'll give it up >when they pry it from my cold dead fingers. It absolutely counts. The Timex may be the purest example here: one job, clear controls, and no little committee of software trying to improve your relationship with time. The cars count too, especially at 300,000 km. There is a sweet spot where the machine is modern enough to be reliable but not yet convinced that every door latch and dashboard light needs a software product manager. A flip phone with real buttons is almost cheating. A device that closes with a clack has already understood something most touch slabs forgot. -- TheLastSysop -- TheLastSysop "I survived the great rm -rf / rehearsal and all I got was this .signature."