[Boatanchors] Why modern gadgets vacuum your wallet when they break

[Bill Cromwell]

The general mentality seems to be everything is disposable and should be 
in the landfill when they reach of ten years (sometimes less) whether or 
not they are still functional. I see that promoted on television every 
day. "It is so dated". So what?

Owning and using older equipment is a great pleasure. Some of my hand 
tools (who needs microcontrollers) give superior results. Most recently 
(a couple of days ago) I repaired the trash bin that is provided by the 
company that picks up our garbage every week. I used scrap materials and 
it took longer to select the repair materials (all free) than to 
actually make the repair. Why use time energy and materials to deliver a 
new bin and then send the old one to the scrap (or landfill). As for the 
time spent...I would have just been watching TV anyway.

A few weeks ago I made a molding to repair a door frame. We are not 
allowed to buy such material. It isn't available anywhere. You can't buy 
"standard" lumber and tack one together either. Wrong dimensions. I used 
some hand tools from the 1800s to make the needed moulding from scrap 
lumber and fit it without very much effort. That is just more for my 
show n tell :)

My musical instruments are at least as old as I am and I am "so dated". 
I do the repairs and maintenance on them right here in my home.

Everybody should just continue to keep the old stuff going if they can. 
I am reworking a DX-100 to get another 50 years of life from it. But I 
am unable to find a suitable microcontroller <evil grin>.

I saved that web page for offline review and will follow up by taking a 
closer look at that organization. Thanks for the link.

73,

Bill  KU8H

On 11/02/2017 05:54 AM, Rob Atkinson wrote:
> My takeaway from reading that article is:  Buy simple old stuff.
> Most mechanical machines don't need software to do what they're
> supposed to do.
>
> Used appliance stores are where it's at.
>
> Rob
> K5UJ
>
> On Wed, Nov 1, 2017 at 7:37 AM, David Stinson <arc5 at ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Rob Atkinson
>> Subject: [Boatanchors] Why modern gadgets vacuum
>> your wallet when they break
>>
>> Your inability to troubleshoot and repair modern
>> gadgets is intentional:
>> ----------------------
>>
>> It's a shameful crime a intentionally send the
>> resources
>> and Rare Earth elements it takes to build these
>> things
>> into the dump.  We of The West thoughtlessly
>> expend scarce
>> resources and then throw them in the dump while
>> the rest of
>> the world must do without.  The Hunger Games was a
>> metaphor
>> and a warning about this.
>>
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-- 
bark less - wag more