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There comes a point where you have to take responsibility for your lifestyle, and recognize that nothing lasts forever. I too have never lost a USB-C cable, but

There comes a point where you have to take responsibility for your lifestyle, and recognize that nothing lasts forever. I too have never lost a USB-C cable, but I don’t move that cable much. When you move things a lot, they break. C'est la vie.

dheera 5y ago
No, I disagree, I think consumer products should be designed to withstand consumer lifestyles. The designers should take responsibility for it, and I pay them for that. Headphone jacks worked great until they made goddamn headphones plug into USB-C as well and then they started breaking. Technology to withstand consumer lifestyles did exist until USB showed up.
- dumpsterdiver 5y ago
  I can totally commiserate with you on the headphones. Not even kidding, at one point I suspected that the powers that be got rid of 1/8 inch jacks just to electrocute political dissidents and enemies of the state by the push of a button. Is it really so far fetched? Thunderbolt can push 3 amps (please correct me if I’m wrong - I’m going by the USB-C spec), and .1 amps is lethal. Bzzzt! Anyway, I’m not trying to get down on you - I was just pointing out that nothing is intended to last forever. I once considered buying a military grade reinforced laptop that was way under specced just because I wanted to take it wherever I wanted and be able to bang it around. The truth is that electronics are easily damaged. Take fiber optic cables for instance. If you bend them ever so slightly too far they will stop working, because the throughput medium is glass. It’s just the nature of the medium. Arguably, we are the most advanced machines on this planet, and yet if we slip and hit our our head, our machinery could easily be put out of commission. I think it’s fair to expect machinery to fail outside of its intended use case. Have you ever bent a piece of copper wire back and forth and feel it get warm before it breaks? That’s just the nature of the material. It is what it is, you know? I’m not saying that you’re wrong to want or expect sturdier constructs - because they are often available for a price (using less abundant materials). I’m just saying that if you want that it’s probably not going to be consumer grade, and it’s not going to be cheap.
- ashtonkem 5y ago
  Products should be designed to withstand consumer lifestyles, but some consumers will be outliers.
  - dheera 5y ago
    The ones who sit in an office all day ARE the outliers, and unfortunately we put the task of design in their hands. The majority of the world gets out and does things. Physically.
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
    - ashtonkem 5y ago
      I’d disagree pretty strongly that the majority of laptop buyers[0] are going out there and doing things. If anything, we’re trending more in a sedentary direction as a species. Also, as an active person myself I’ve never had a problem with USB-C; I don’t use my laptop out hiking and fishing, and I’m kind of confused who in the world is riding horses or bicycles and also fiddling with their consumer electronics at the same time. And while maybe USB-C is less durable than headphone jacks, I can also say that wired headphones suck when you’re being active. I can’t even count how many times a door knob ripped out my earbuds and sent me into a fit of rage. I switched to Bluetooth and never looked back. 0 - Of course the world’s poor are active, but they’re also not the target consumers for USB-C devices.
      - dheera 5y ago
        > I’m kind of confused who in the world is riding horses or bicycles and also fiddling with their consumer electronics at the same time Please don't dismiss things just because you don't do them. I go on long bike rides with navigation on and that drains the battery quickly, so the needs to be constantly plugged into a portable battery pack, while in my pocket. This extremely common.

dheera 5y ago

No, I disagree, I think consumer products should be designed to withstand consumer lifestyles. The designers should take responsibility for it, and I pay them for that. Headphone jacks worked great until they made goddamn headphones plug into USB-C as well and then they started breaking. Technology to withstand consumer lifestyles did exist until USB showed up.

dumpsterdiver 5y ago
I can totally commiserate with you on the headphones. Not even kidding, at one point I suspected that the powers that be got rid of 1/8 inch jacks just to electrocute political dissidents and enemies of the state by the push of a button. Is it really so far fetched? Thunderbolt can push 3 amps (please correct me if I’m wrong - I’m going by the USB-C spec), and .1 amps is lethal. Bzzzt! Anyway, I’m not trying to get down on you - I was just pointing out that nothing is intended to last forever. I once considered buying a military grade reinforced laptop that was way under specced just because I wanted to take it wherever I wanted and be able to bang it around. The truth is that electronics are easily damaged. Take fiber optic cables for instance. If you bend them ever so slightly too far they will stop working, because the throughput medium is glass. It’s just the nature of the medium. Arguably, we are the most advanced machines on this planet, and yet if we slip and hit our our head, our machinery could easily be put out of commission. I think it’s fair to expect machinery to fail outside of its intended use case. Have you ever bent a piece of copper wire back and forth and feel it get warm before it breaks? That’s just the nature of the material. It is what it is, you know? I’m not saying that you’re wrong to want or expect sturdier constructs - because they are often available for a price (using less abundant materials). I’m just saying that if you want that it’s probably not going to be consumer grade, and it’s not going to be cheap.
ashtonkem 5y ago
Products should be designed to withstand consumer lifestyles, but some consumers will be outliers.
- dheera 5y ago
  The ones who sit in an office all day ARE the outliers, and unfortunately we put the task of design in their hands. The majority of the world gets out and does things. Physically.
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  - ashtonkem 5y ago
    I’d disagree pretty strongly that the majority of laptop buyers[0] are going out there and doing things. If anything, we’re trending more in a sedentary direction as a species. Also, as an active person myself I’ve never had a problem with USB-C; I don’t use my laptop out hiking and fishing, and I’m kind of confused who in the world is riding horses or bicycles and also fiddling with their consumer electronics at the same time. And while maybe USB-C is less durable than headphone jacks, I can also say that wired headphones suck when you’re being active. I can’t even count how many times a door knob ripped out my earbuds and sent me into a fit of rage. I switched to Bluetooth and never looked back. 0 - Of course the world’s poor are active, but they’re also not the target consumers for USB-C devices.
    - dheera 5y ago
      > I’m kind of confused who in the world is riding horses or bicycles and also fiddling with their consumer electronics at the same time Please don't dismiss things just because you don't do them. I go on long bike rides with navigation on and that drains the battery quickly, so the needs to be constantly plugged into a portable battery pack, while in my pocket. This extremely common.