4 ms·

Placebo or not, what makes no sense to me is when people continuously slap at the Walk button as if toggling it more than once will somehow make the signal chan

Placebo or not, what makes no sense to me is when people continuously slap at the Walk button as if toggling it more than once will somehow make the signal change over faster.

pasquinelli 10y ago
it's not a toggle button. when you press one it doesn't necessarily feel as though you've depressed it enough, so you press it a few times. you don't want to miss your signal and have to wait for the lights to go around again.
- TeMPOraL 10y ago
  Also, an unsophisticated mind will think that maybe "the system" will understand multiple presses as multiple people and prioritize the change somehow. A more sophisticated mind would consider that maybe they interpret short bursts at the button as one (impatient) signal. Anyway, I find myself hitting those buttons multiple times just because... I'm not really thinking about it, I just press and then press few more times to be sure. It's probably driven more by the knowledge that doing so will not do anything negative, than from expecting a positive outcome.
- drdeadringer 10y ago
  Pressing twice in case you "didn't depress it enough" is perfectly fine and understandable. However, standing there repeatedly slapping or pressing at the thing like a rat trying to get another dose of heroin is crazy to me.
  - colejohnson66 10y ago
    I'm guilty of pressing it repeatedly sometimes just because I'm bored
    - throwanem 10y ago
      You shouldn't be guilty about that. You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. And it's durable, of course, being made for outdoor use, and so it stays pretty much the same even though no one really cares about it or looks after it any more, day upon day and year upon year, and it stoically refuses to show much sign of its advancing age and the existential uncertainty which now pervades it, and every day puts it one day further away from its memories of brighter days long gone. Days when it was useful. Days when it mattered. And then someone comes along who's bored. Hey, there's nothing better to do, so you push the button. Maybe you push it a few times, maybe a bunch of times. Maybe just once. Doesn't matter. You're not as bored now. And the button gets to be useful again. Not in the same way as it used to be. Doesn't matter. Useful again. Making someone's day a little bit better again. Worthwhile again. Even if only for a minute. Don't be ashamed of that. Never feel guilty about that. Small kindnesses matter, too. Me, I just like the sturdy feel of the switch.
      - drdeadringer 10y ago
        > You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. Now I want a story about a button who wants to be pressed. It doesn't do anything, it serves no function, it flags no signal... it's just there to be pressed. For petty Human psychology, so the Human can feel more comfortable in a robotic landscape. "Please, press me. Put your fingertip on me and push me inward. You'll feel better. I will be fulfilled. My purpose will be actualized. You will feel such a subtle pleasure you won't even notice, but you will fall asleep happier tonight. Just by pressing me. Please. Press me."
        throwanem 10y ago
        Self-awareness would be a terrible thing to inflict on a decommissioned crosswalk button.
jacalata 10y ago
Some of them believe this kind of thing: http://www.hipforums.com/forum/topic/350512-i-have-the-secret-code-to-change-crosswalk-signals/ http://www.hipforums.com/forum/topic/350512-i-have-the-secre...
CM30 10y ago
Maybe they believe repeatedly hitting the button tells the machine they're angry and hurries it up? Like how yelling at the automated phone system can sometimes get you passed over to an actual person, or yelling at the social media staff on Twitter seems to be a quicker way of getting your support prioritised...

Placebo or not, what makes no sense to me is when people continuously slap at the Walk button as if toggling it more than once will somehow make the signal change over faster.

pasquinelli 10y ago

it's not a toggle button. when you press one it doesn't necessarily feel as though you've depressed it enough, so you press it a few times. you don't want to miss your signal and have to wait for the lights to go around again.

TeMPOraL 10y ago
Also, an unsophisticated mind will think that maybe "the system" will understand multiple presses as multiple people and prioritize the change somehow. A more sophisticated mind would consider that maybe they interpret short bursts at the button as one (impatient) signal. Anyway, I find myself hitting those buttons multiple times just because... I'm not really thinking about it, I just press and then press few more times to be sure. It's probably driven more by the knowledge that doing so will not do anything negative, than from expecting a positive outcome.
drdeadringer 10y ago
Pressing twice in case you "didn't depress it enough" is perfectly fine and understandable. However, standing there repeatedly slapping or pressing at the thing like a rat trying to get another dose of heroin is crazy to me.
- colejohnson66 10y ago
  I'm guilty of pressing it repeatedly sometimes just because I'm bored
  - throwanem 10y ago
    You shouldn't be guilty about that. You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. And it's durable, of course, being made for outdoor use, and so it stays pretty much the same even though no one really cares about it or looks after it any more, day upon day and year upon year, and it stoically refuses to show much sign of its advancing age and the existential uncertainty which now pervades it, and every day puts it one day further away from its memories of brighter days long gone. Days when it was useful. Days when it mattered. And then someone comes along who's bored. Hey, there's nothing better to do, so you push the button. Maybe you push it a few times, maybe a bunch of times. Maybe just once. Doesn't matter. You're not as bored now. And the button gets to be useful again. Not in the same way as it used to be. Doesn't matter. Useful again. Making someone's day a little bit better again. Worthwhile again. Even if only for a minute. Don't be ashamed of that. Never feel guilty about that. Small kindnesses matter, too. Me, I just like the sturdy feel of the switch.
    - drdeadringer 10y ago
      > You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. Now I want a story about a button who wants to be pressed. It doesn't do anything, it serves no function, it flags no signal... it's just there to be pressed. For petty Human psychology, so the Human can feel more comfortable in a robotic landscape. "Please, press me. Put your fingertip on me and push me inward. You'll feel better. I will be fulfilled. My purpose will be actualized. You will feel such a subtle pleasure you won't even notice, but you will fall asleep happier tonight. Just by pressing me. Please. Press me."
      - throwanem 10y ago
        Self-awareness would be a terrible thing to inflict on a decommissioned crosswalk button.

jacalata 10y ago

Some of them believe this kind of thing: http://www.hipforums.com/forum/topic/350512-i-have-the-secret-code-to-change-crosswalk-signals/ http://www.hipforums.com/forum/topic/350512-i-have-the-secre...

CM30 10y ago

Maybe they believe repeatedly hitting the button tells the machine they're angry and hurries it up? Like how yelling at the automated phone system can sometimes get you passed over to an actual person, or yelling at the social media staff on Twitter seems to be a quicker way of getting your support prioritised...