4 ms·

I still blows my mind that they designed and built it more than 45 years ago! Kudos to engineers.

by jp0d 4y ago

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
kristopolous 4y ago
I presume many of the people working on it now were born after its launch and were children when it took the final pale blue dot photograph
wiz21c 4y ago
If only my fridge had such a lifetime...
- selectnull 4y ago
  How much are you willing to pay for the fridge?
  - toast0 4y ago
    I paid a ton of money for a sub-zero fridge, but it came with a free house. The console is pretty neat, but I can't figure out how or when to input the finishing moves.
  - somenameforme 4y ago
    Veritasium has an awesome video on planned obsolescence here. [1] The problem in many cases isn't that it costs so much more to make products that last, but rather that making products that break is just way more profitable when you can effectively control the market to such a degree that you don't need to worry about some party pooper (1) coming in and making stuff that does genuinely last and (2) gaining significant marketshare. The example of the light bulb cartel that had unquality assurance, spot testing, and a formal structure of fines and penalties for any members who made too long of lasting lightbulbs is just hilariously dystopic. [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE
    - dx034 4y ago
      But I don't believe there's a fridge cartel. However, few customers spend more money to have a product with higher quality components that'd increase durability but not features. Using more expensive cables, valves, etc isn't really worth it for manufacturers unless customers are willing to pay extra. But one of the major reasons is probably that products have become much more complex. A 30 year old fridge had few components that could break. Modern fridges are much more complex (because extra features sell well), thus more stuff that can break.
      - somenameforme 4y ago
        In modern times planned obsolescence is a normal part of business. The comments for the linked video [1] are awesome because it has so many people from different areas of industry (and academia) sharing anecdotes. So cartel? Probably not. Built to fail? Almost certainly. If we view things only through the lens of profit, then MTTF (mean time to fail) is just another curve to maximize against profit. If it's too short then your reputation will suffer and you'll lose money. If it's too long, then you're just leaving money on the table. In our society the brilliant engineer is not the one who makes a thing that last for 50 years, but one that lasts for just long enough to avoid damaging your brand image, and also fails in a way that makes the consumer more incentivized to buy a new thing than try to repair their current one. The guy who came up with the idea of slowing old iPhones "to save battery life" is who the bonus+promotion is going to. One of the biggest problems that has to be understood is that there is every incentive for money-driven governments to actively support planned obsolescence. Planned obsolescence drives factors that we believe are indicators of a strong economy, like GDP. If people were able to stop endlessly buying the same things over and over, the "economy" would take an absolutely massive hit. And with it there would also be declines in employment, tax revenue, and everything else. This is one of the many examples where the socially detrimental relationship between government and big business isn't just based around corruption. Of course our system, for all its flaws, also has its benefits. Like the old Soviet joke goes, "It may be true that the Americans have the biggest skyscrapers, but we have the biggest transistors!" [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE
    - 4y ago
  - wiz21c 4y ago
    How many fridges are made each year ?
- gibolt 4y ago
  Is your refrigerator running? Yes ... away from Earth at 38,210 mph
- Hublium 4y ago
  My family has a 1950's GM Frigidaire. Works still fine. Nowadays, we only use it occasionally though when we have a party or something.
rich_sasha 4y ago
I wonder if they still have a daily stand-up and weekly scrums. Surely yes, I can't imagine the technology working without those.
- kristopolous 4y ago
  I bet a few competent people are told they are responsible for it and then they're mostly left alone.

I still blows my mind that they designed and built it more than 45 years ago! Kudos to engineers.

by jp0d 4y ago

I still blows my mind that they designed and built it more than 45 years ago! Kudos to engineers.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

kristopolous 4y ago

I presume many of the people working on it now were born after its launch and were children when it took the final pale blue dot photograph

wiz21c 4y ago

If only my fridge had such a lifetime...

selectnull 4y ago
How much are you willing to pay for the fridge?
- toast0 4y ago
  I paid a ton of money for a sub-zero fridge, but it came with a free house. The console is pretty neat, but I can't figure out how or when to input the finishing moves.
- somenameforme 4y ago
  Veritasium has an awesome video on planned obsolescence here. [1] The problem in many cases isn't that it costs so much more to make products that last, but rather that making products that break is just way more profitable when you can effectively control the market to such a degree that you don't need to worry about some party pooper (1) coming in and making stuff that does genuinely last and (2) gaining significant marketshare. The example of the light bulb cartel that had unquality assurance, spot testing, and a formal structure of fines and penalties for any members who made too long of lasting lightbulbs is just hilariously dystopic. [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE
  - dx034 4y ago
    But I don't believe there's a fridge cartel. However, few customers spend more money to have a product with higher quality components that'd increase durability but not features. Using more expensive cables, valves, etc isn't really worth it for manufacturers unless customers are willing to pay extra. But one of the major reasons is probably that products have become much more complex. A 30 year old fridge had few components that could break. Modern fridges are much more complex (because extra features sell well), thus more stuff that can break.
    - somenameforme 4y ago
      In modern times planned obsolescence is a normal part of business. The comments for the linked video [1] are awesome because it has so many people from different areas of industry (and academia) sharing anecdotes. So cartel? Probably not. Built to fail? Almost certainly. If we view things only through the lens of profit, then MTTF (mean time to fail) is just another curve to maximize against profit. If it's too short then your reputation will suffer and you'll lose money. If it's too long, then you're just leaving money on the table. In our society the brilliant engineer is not the one who makes a thing that last for 50 years, but one that lasts for just long enough to avoid damaging your brand image, and also fails in a way that makes the consumer more incentivized to buy a new thing than try to repair their current one. The guy who came up with the idea of slowing old iPhones "to save battery life" is who the bonus+promotion is going to. One of the biggest problems that has to be understood is that there is every incentive for money-driven governments to actively support planned obsolescence. Planned obsolescence drives factors that we believe are indicators of a strong economy, like GDP. If people were able to stop endlessly buying the same things over and over, the "economy" would take an absolutely massive hit. And with it there would also be declines in employment, tax revenue, and everything else. This is one of the many examples where the socially detrimental relationship between government and big business isn't just based around corruption. Of course our system, for all its flaws, also has its benefits. Like the old Soviet joke goes, "It may be true that the Americans have the biggest skyscrapers, but we have the biggest transistors!" [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5v8D-alAKE
  - 4y ago
- wiz21c 4y ago
  How many fridges are made each year ?
gibolt 4y ago
Is your refrigerator running? Yes ... away from Earth at 38,210 mph
Hublium 4y ago
My family has a 1950's GM Frigidaire. Works still fine. Nowadays, we only use it occasionally though when we have a party or something.

rich_sasha 4y ago

I wonder if they still have a daily stand-up and weekly scrums. Surely yes, I can't imagine the technology working without those.

kristopolous 4y ago
I bet a few competent people are told they are responsible for it and then they're mostly left alone.