why are people getting more useless

[wotan]

dave.m wrote..
I explained the warning light had come on and after checking all the tyres, which were all at book pressure of 28psi, he said it was most likely the change in outside air temp from when we had parked up about five hours earlier.
The warning light stayed on for the next four miles then went off, and we never saw it again.

Technology, bah! If I had had a flat tyre, I would have known with the way car handled so extras , which are costly, fitted for no real reason.

This to me sounds good technology, had you have waited for the poor handling of the car to tell you something was wrong with a tyre, then in all probability that tyre would be damaged, or worse it could have caused an accident.
Good ideas have to be accepted for their practical worth.

Wotan

 

[dave.m]

Woton,
I accept that good ideas are fine but when they malfunction, and the car was only four months old, then they are not much use.
As all the tyres were up to pressure and it still gave a warning then it could have led to a case of 'crying wolf'.

dave

 

[WDIK]

a biker anology, ridden me bike for bleedin years, why do i need a light to tell me Im in neutral???????????

lets call it the idiot light

that wae 40yrs ago, oh over to pretty things

 

[cmother1]

a biker anology, ridden me bike for bleedin years, why do i need a light to tell me Im in neutral???????????

lets call it the idiot light

Other bits of junk on cars that I've never seen the point of:

Sunroof: I had 2 in my last car and all they were good for was baking your head. Could account for some of my more erratic behaviour

Electric Sunroof: (I can hear the 'aahs' of covetousness from here!) as for Sunroof, but with electrical additions to go wrong. What's the problem with a mechanical version - the handle's only above your left ear - same place as the electric button.

Electric Mirrors: Do you really need to fart around adjusting them that much? It's only really the driver's side that needs moving for people of different heights. My old Mazda had little levers inside the car for adjusting the door mirrors so you didn't even need to get your hand wet. What next? The electric internal mirror? Probably - they're running out of things to put motors on..

Heated seats: For f*cks sake Where do they think we're living? Sweden? Surely a special request item only.

Thousand's of warning lights on the dash (most of which are meaningless to me): Spent several weeks just after I got my present car getting the dealer to sort out the little picture of an engine that refused to go out under any circumstances. Turned out it was the sensors that monitor the oil vapour in the sump being recycled into the inlet manifold that were turning the light on. Nothing wrong with the vapour levels or car in general according to the computerised test rig - turned out it was the sensors that were b*ggered. Took 2 goes to get a set that worked. Thank god it was still under warranty (cf low tyre pressure warning above)

Radar: on the back bumper: To tell you you're getting close to something. Yes, I know I am. I can see the wall out of the back window. I'd turn it off if I could work how to!

Etc, etc, (fume , rage )

 

[Stivino]

I hate the levelling switch for the headlights. Everybody drives around with it on the highset setting, then, when they load up the boot, they light up the sky even when on dip. What's the point in lighting up the sky when it's the road you need to see. Kn0bheads!

 

[Donkmeister]

I hate the levelling switch for the headlights.

The thing is, most people don't bother reading the handbook that tells you what each setting is for.

My current hate: illegal bulbs. I had a bulb blow so wandered into Halfords. Picked up a bulb with the same code on the top, I went for the slightly more expensive one that claimed to have a longer life. I was halfway to the till when I stopped to read the back and saw in tiny writing "ILLEGAL FOR ON-ROAD USE".

Judging by the number of cars I see with one really bright lamp and one normal one, I think a lot of people have just picked up the first H7 they saw and fitted it.

Surely they should write "ILLEGAL FOR ON-ROAD USE" all over the front, for those few people who do use the vehicle purely for off-road stuff?

 

[Donkmeister]

Heated seats: For f*cks sake Where do they think we're living? Sweden? Surely a special request item only.

My other half has "botty warmers" in her car. Believe me, when it's 6am, it's been -5 degrees all night and the seats are leather, you start to appreciate their presence! And I'm someone who doesn't mind the cold.

I bought my first car in 2001 and got one with air-con. A chap I worked with thought I was mad to pay for something that would get used "maybe 5 or 6 days of the year when we have a heatwave!". How many people find that aircon helps demist the car or makes the air a bit nicer on a long road trip? I would say few people save it for those rare 25+ degree summer days.

I don't have aircon in my current car and it is a nightmare to demist.

 

[EddieM]

old tvs. turn on press a button, they change channel. straight away.

That's after the valves had warmed up and you've arsed around with the vertical and horizontal shift? Yes, I am that old.

 

[masona]

Radar: on the back bumper: To tell you you're getting close to something. Yes, I know I am. I can see the wall out of the back window. I'd turn it off if I could work how to!

I know what you mean but they can be a good thing to have specially a small child which cannot be seen by any of the mirrors

 

[EddieM]

Radar: on the back bumper: To tell you you're getting close to something. Yes, I know I am. I can see the wall out of the back window. I'd turn it off if I could work how to!

I know what you mean but they can be a good thing to have specially a small child which cannot be seen by any of the mirrors

They don't work all that well anyway, I managed to reverse into a post, not a blip from the parking sensors.

 

[kidgreen61]

Going back to solmon's op.

I fitted an electric shower for a customer who complained the next day that I had fitted it 'too high'.

I couldn't understand this because I had asked her where she wanted it mounting, and done so accordingly.

When I went to see her, it turned out that the shower head was too high and the silly cow didn't realise she could slide it down on the riser rail

 

[EddieM]

A mate once asked me how to change the oil in his car. Told him about the drain plug / filter, then after replacing the filter to refill the engine with clean oil. He later told me the job had taken ages, and why on earth did they make the oil filling hole so small?

Yes, he refilled the oil via the dipstick tube. You really cannot help some people.

 

[megawatt]

I have a friend who's a cardiac surgeon, totally f***ing useless with anything technical but great with hearts and saving lives.

It takes all sorts to make a World and we can't all be good at everything.

The real skill is to make a name at being f***ing useless at everything ... Tony Blair has REAL skill

MW

 

[cmother1]

why does new technology take bloody longer...some infuriating examples

teletext on tv, very good. digital teletext...loading.....loading.....loading...

old tvs. turn on press a button, they change channel. straight away. new tvs...turn on....press button wait, press button again still nothing, press button again. oh good now im on channel 111 instead of 1

etc

progress? progress my a**e

Getting back to Thermo's questions...

It's probably because most of these gadgets are using microprocessor technology designed in the mid 80s - Acorn's ARM chips. 97% of mobile phones use them today, but I suspect they've been pushed to the limit. Everything today is digital and dependent on software to make it work. If your processor isn't up to snuff or you don't have sufficient memory for key functions expect a delay.

Still, why worry. I heard only last week that the average life of an electronic gadget is 13 months (but considerably less if you are my wife!)
I'm sure the next model will be much better....

 

[oompah]

(but considerably less if you are my wife!)
I'm sure the next model will be much better....

something you wish to share?