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And at a certain complexity level it’s not with printing out reams of minute schematics about the thousands of components inside a modern flat screen that nobod

by orf 7y ago

And at a certain complexity level it’s not with printing out reams of minute schematics about the thousands of components inside a modern flat screen that nobody will ever read. Go get them via PDF on the internet, if available.

Nextgrid 7y ago
I think his point is that back in the day manufacturers were happy to provide the resources needed for users to repair their products (or delegate it to a third-party of their choosing). This is not the case anymore. You are not going to find a manufacturer-approved source for schematics for most modern consumer products. The only way these schematics surface on the web is by being stolen and leaked by factory workers and this could take considerable time from the release of the product. Manufacturers also try to corrupt the law to their advantage by lobbying against bills such as the right to repair with completely insane arguments (often involving safety, etc - the typical “think of the children” nonsense) which sadly work against clueless senators (or whatever the people at these hearings are called in the US). You can check out Louis Rossmann’s YouTube channel for recent examples of this.
myself248 7y ago
The "if available" part is the problem. I'd be 100% fine with electronic delivery, if they were simply available. Having to go to dodgy websites with my browser in paranoid mode just to find documentation to try to keep my gizmo out of the e-waste stream a little longer, is suboptimal. Learning and fixing should not feel like a crime.
mopsi 7y ago
Have TVs become more complex? I recently peeked into mine, and it had only two major boards, one for power, the other for AV stuff. Not mine, but similar: https://i.imgur.com/1uHsfYI.jpg https://i.imgur.com/1uHsfYI.jpg Hardly anything there, and very easy to replace a blown capacitor or a whole board.
- osmarks 7y ago
  They're more integrated. Each board and chip is doing a lot more than an old TV would have, and you can't really do anything to them other than just swap out the whole thing.
yc-kraln 7y ago
Modern flat screens are actually far more simple than the TVs of yore; that actually makes them more difficult to repair. You will typically have a power supply (and if not an LED backlight, then a high voltage one as well) and a "T-Con" board, which usually has one honking big SoC on it which is both Vendor and TV specific. There isn't that much to repair aside from the power supply, and honestly you don't really need a schematic for that to repair it.
- maxerickson 7y ago
  Integrated is on a different axis than simple.

by orf 7y ago

Nextgrid 7y ago

I think his point is that back in the day manufacturers were happy to provide the resources needed for users to repair their products (or delegate it to a third-party of their choosing). This is not the case anymore. You are not going to find a manufacturer-approved source for schematics for most modern consumer products. The only way these schematics surface on the web is by being stolen and leaked by factory workers and this could take considerable time from the release of the product. Manufacturers also try to corrupt the law to their advantage by lobbying against bills such as the right to repair with completely insane arguments (often involving safety, etc - the typical “think of the children” nonsense) which sadly work against clueless senators (or whatever the people at these hearings are called in the US). You can check out Louis Rossmann’s YouTube channel for recent examples of this.

myself248 7y ago

The "if available" part is the problem. I'd be 100% fine with electronic delivery, if they were simply available. Having to go to dodgy websites with my browser in paranoid mode just to find documentation to try to keep my gizmo out of the e-waste stream a little longer, is suboptimal. Learning and fixing should not feel like a crime.

mopsi 7y ago

Have TVs become more complex? I recently peeked into mine, and it had only two major boards, one for power, the other for AV stuff. Not mine, but similar: https://i.imgur.com/1uHsfYI.jpg https://i.imgur.com/1uHsfYI.jpg Hardly anything there, and very easy to replace a blown capacitor or a whole board.

osmarks 7y ago
They're more integrated. Each board and chip is doing a lot more than an old TV would have, and you can't really do anything to them other than just swap out the whole thing.

yc-kraln 7y ago

Modern flat screens are actually far more simple than the TVs of yore; that actually makes them more difficult to repair. You will typically have a power supply (and if not an LED backlight, then a high voltage one as well) and a "T-Con" board, which usually has one honking big SoC on it which is both Vendor and TV specific. There isn't that much to repair aside from the power supply, and honestly you don't really need a schematic for that to repair it.

maxerickson 7y ago
Integrated is on a different axis than simple.