Last night, I disagreed with this, but wasn't sure why, so I didn't post. One reason I prefer manufactured things to handmade things is that the manufactured o

Last night, I disagreed with this, but wasn't sure why, so I didn't post. One reason I prefer manufactured things to handmade things is that the manufactured ones seem "right" in a way that the handmade ones never really do. When I make something by hand, it's never really done, because I can always see imperfections and problems. When something is made by machine, even the imperfections and problems seem like part of it, rather than mistakes, because the machine (ideally) does the same thing every time. It appeals to my sense of completion. Another reason to prefer manufactured things to handmade (or custom) things is precisely that there's less information associated. It's more relaxing -- less cluttered, in the same sense as the Stuff essay ( http://www.paulgraham.com/stuff.html http://www.paulgraham.com/stuff.html ).