My definition of a tool that just works is not a hammer that will only hit some kinds of nails and refuses to break rocks. Even an appliance is a tool. A bicyc

My definition of a tool that just works is not a hammer that will only hit some kinds of nails and refuses to break rocks. Even an appliance is a tool. A bicycle, as in "bicycle for the mind" does not become more useful and valid when it gains the ability to decide if it agrees with how and where it's being operated. There are people who think that's a good thing, who think the ultimate form of life would be the wonderful order if all the bicycles kept anyone from going too fast, removing their hands from the handle bars, riding on sidewalks, ignoring traffic lights, etc... But those bicycles are no longer human amplifiers. They are no longer tools, or they are tools but the user is not the person on the bike. The order argument ignores the ultimate purpose of any tool, and ultimately the point of human existence itself. It's flatly invalid to forget that the person wields the tool, not the other way around. Sanity checks and guard rails and sane defaults etc are one thing, those are themselves tools that ultimately empower the wielder, as long as the user is the one who ultimately controls them.