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Car features and other gadgets: was: my fixie doesn't need improvement
On Fri, 16 Feb 2018 09:27:28 -0800, Joerg
wrote: IMO there is stuff that mankind doesn't need so badly. Power windows, power locks, automatic transmissions in cars. Or electric shifters on bikes. I've got none of that and I don't want any of it. Power seats are a deal-killer for me: I'm so fat that I have to slide the seat all the way back to get in, and so short that I have slide it all the way forward to reach the pedals. A power seat that could do that in a reasonable length of time would be outlawed and the designer would be sued. But for people who drive all day every day, not having power seats would kill the deal. Power windows were a deal killer for my late mother-in-law. She frequently had to wait in a parked car, and wanted to be able to open a window without starting the engine. I love power windows, because I always drive alone and hate air conditioning. Being able to open or close a window on the other side of the car without taking my mind off my driving is *very* convenient. Power locks are a safety device. A fellow who had just retired from a career that included helping to clean up bodies spattered on the roadway assured me that a car is safer with the doors locked because they are less likely to pop open in a crash. But who is going to lock up every single time if you have to crawl all over the car to do it? (I *am* a bit concerned that the doors can be *un*locked as easily.) (I particularly don't like the way the car helpfully unlocks everything the moment I put it in "park".) I used to drive a stick shift. When I was learning to drive it, people assured me that I'd have automatic shifting pretty soon, and it was true. I got so accustomed to manual shifting that I found it difficult to drive an automatic when we had to get rid of the stick shift. But syncromesh was really, really worth having. If our current car doesn't outlive me, I won't consider stick shift as a replacement It takes a long time to adjust, and we'd have to change both motor vehicles at once because I'm not at all good at switching protocols in life-and-death situations. Trying to use word-processor commands while typing a Usenet post does no harm; using the wrong protocol on the highway could lead to headlines. Electric shifters for bikes sound like something that has to be hauled around, and an Ed Kearny lighting system was as far as I ever went in the way of electrifying the bike. When it fell apart -- the decades-old motorcycle bulb, as far as I know, is *still* working fine, but it fell out of the housing -- I didn't replace it, but I did keep my in-case-the-taillight-fails blinkie. I suppose I should go out and turn it on to make sure the batteries are still good. It's been a long time since I went out after dark in *any* vehicle, if you don't count driving to the emergency room. (Argonne Road is weird at three in the morning.) Went out to check the blinkie, and remembered that I had to unscrew it for some reason, and instead of putting it back, I dropped it into the bag I was taking to Goodwill. I still have two red reflectors bolted to my panniers, just in case. Electric can openers are gadgets for making it awkward to open cans -- but there are lots of people for whom "awkward" is an improvement. I can't see the appeal of electric carving knives. They chew up the meat, and aren't as fast as a well-honed knife. I suspect that the guys who use them like the noise they make. -- Joy Beeson joy beeson at comcast dot net http://wlweather.net/PAGEJOY/ |
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