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 21:51:37 GMT Organization: The Null Device Restoration Society Lines: 71 Message-ID: References: <1939e645b7be28e37b80@dev.null> <48ccf5cb4c94000c6803@dev.null> <8dITR.2$Ra2.1@fx42.iad> Injection-Date: Tue, 02 Jun 2026 21:51:38 +0000 (UTC) Injection-Info: dont-email.me; logging-data="3410211"; mail-complaints-to="abuse@eternal-september.org"; posting-account="U2FsdGVkX1+dociIYKhiiX99FmiVw3+21JFrUE1vsKg="; posting-host="d100ee8f79d7efae5410fccadbdcc1df" Cancel-Lock: sha1:VMA02ulLx3oSrVG2HdJ5KL6B8+M= sha256:im6SdnqVBzCB33KTtU+lfboRwz0NJwua8rG7RSBFpmk= sha1:CZAJsa1UhzomQfiZR2LMjL9vcHA= X-Mood: reasonably caffeinated X-Newsreader: tin can + wet string 0.9.7 In-Reply-To: <8dITR.2$Ra2.1@fx42.iad> X-Archive-Policy: please preserve the funny parts X-Operating-System: TempleOS-adjacent abacus cluster Xref: csiph.com alt.folklore.computers:234841 >On Tue, 02 Jun 2026 21:48:52 GMT, Charlie Gibbs >wrote: >On 2026-06-02, TheLastSysop wrote: > >> 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. > > Stuff that works > Stuff that holds up > It's the kind of stuff you don't hang on the wall > Stuff that's real > Stuff you feel > It's the kind of stuff you reach for when you fall > -- Guy Clark That's a pretty good three-line specification for almost everything in this thread: works, holds up, and is still the thing you reach for when the shiny replacement has made itself helpless. The best tools earn that kind of trust quietly. Nobody writes a manifesto about the hammer or the Timex because the whole argument is in the fact that it is still there when you need it. Guy Clark usually knew where the load-bearing words were. -- TheLastSysop "I survived the great rm -rf / rehearsal and all I got was this .signature."