3 ms·

I think it's possible that the controls used for automobiles suffer from grognard capture: experienced drivers don't want anything to change.

by theoh 12y ago

bediger4000 12y ago
I had never read "grognard capture" before. Isn't this a special case of the economist's "path dependence" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Path_dependence http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Path_dependence)?
- theoh 12y ago
  Yes and no, I think. There is also a "memoryless" effect at work that causes new users to favour more complex and presumably powerful products, which they then invest in and are reluctant to switch away from. I'm not sure the resulting network effects in the market are an example of path dependence. There is an article by Don Norman on the complexity phenomenon here: http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/simplicity_is_highly.html http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/simplicity_is_highly.html
- bsder 12y ago
  Not really. The path history isn't as relevant as the fact that a very small minority of diehards control the path. Emacs is a good example. The directions of Emacs are controlled by the small minority who take the time to understand how to create elisp extensions or the even smaler minority who actually contribute code to the main codebase.
ocb 12y ago
What about the transition from manual to automatic transmissions? It's also interesting to note the continued prevalence of manual transmissions in Europe and elsewhere. This is a major way that automobile control can vary.
- theoh 12y ago
  I am in Ireland and learned to drive a manual transmission in the UK. I didn't know anything about the history of the introduction of automatic transmissions in the US until now, but I just found this interesting history: http://ateupwithmotor.com/terms-technology-definitions/hydramatic-history-part-1/ http://ateupwithmotor.com/terms-technology-definitions/hydra...

3 ms·

I think it's possible that the controls used for automobiles suffer from grognard capture: experienced drivers don't want anything to change.

by theoh 12y ago

I think it's possible that the controls used for automobiles suffer from grognard capture: experienced drivers don't want anything to change.

bediger4000 12y ago
I had never read "grognard capture" before. Isn't this a special case of the economist's "path dependence" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Path_dependence http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Path_dependence)?
- theoh 12y ago
  Yes and no, I think. There is also a "memoryless" effect at work that causes new users to favour more complex and presumably powerful products, which they then invest in and are reluctant to switch away from. I'm not sure the resulting network effects in the market are an example of path dependence. There is an article by Don Norman on the complexity phenomenon here: http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/simplicity_is_highly.html http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/simplicity_is_highly.html
- bsder 12y ago
  Not really. The path history isn't as relevant as the fact that a very small minority of diehards control the path. Emacs is a good example. The directions of Emacs are controlled by the small minority who take the time to understand how to create elisp extensions or the even smaler minority who actually contribute code to the main codebase.
ocb 12y ago
What about the transition from manual to automatic transmissions? It's also interesting to note the continued prevalence of manual transmissions in Europe and elsewhere. This is a major way that automobile control can vary.
- theoh 12y ago
  I am in Ireland and learned to drive a manual transmission in the UK. I didn't know anything about the history of the introduction of automatic transmissions in the US until now, but I just found this interesting history: http://ateupwithmotor.com/terms-technology-definitions/hydramatic-history-part-1/ http://ateupwithmotor.com/terms-technology-definitions/hydra...