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Ten Technologies That Refuse to Die
kudyadi writes "Technology Review has an interesting article on, as the title suggests, ten technologies that we continue using despite advances made in the same. The best example is that of analog watches, "Compared to today's digital timepieces, old-fashioned, sweep-hand watches are pathetic one-trick ponies. Digital-watch wearers can check temperature, altitude, and the time in Tokyo, play tunes and games, and send messages. Can wristwatch videoconferencing, Web surfing, and tarot readings be far off? But what digital watches can't do, according to sweep-hand proponents, is display the time and context as elegantly and intuitively as an analog model."" Interesting counterpoint to this post from a few years back about technologies that didn't manage to hang on. And Bruce Sterling has a short list of ones he'd like to see go away, too ;)
I own a decent Hamilton watch and feel a little sheepish that it is powered by a battery since the classic Hamilton watches are known for their wind-up machinery. I'm often on the lookout for a good deal on a wind-up because they are works of art. I use a digital watch for some athletic stuff, but aside from that you can't touch the class of "classic" watch machinery.
-- Solaris Central - http://w
What next. I should get my wife cubic zirconium because it looks the same as a diamond but is much cheaper because it was made with "technology".
No, you should do it because you can get more for your money AND avoid supporting an international crime ring.
Pay the same ammount for the gift (so she doesn't think you cheap), but use the rest of the money for something more. (Bigger rock, more rocks, non-rock gift--it's your wife!)
You're not being old-fashioned--you're being brainwashed by a criminal syndicate.
If you want a watch to tell time, buy any $2 or $30 job and when it needs a new battery just buy a new watch.
But, you probably don't need a watch. Your cel phone, car, coffee pot, desk phone, computer(s), microwave, car and God knows what else all tell time for you.
So why do people still buy watches? Status and adornment. Plus there's that collecting thing. Essentially they're either bought for the jewellry value (hey, is jewellry obsolete?) or for the complicated mechanics inside them - the "movement" as the guts are called.
If you look at the numbers from the Swiss luxury good sector they're staggering in both volume of units shipped and price and the average price is increasing. A "decent" watch can barely be had for under a grand. A "good" watch starts at five grand and it just goes up: 10K, 30K, 80K, 250K... whatever you want to spend. Wanna spend millions? No problem, how bout a vintage Patek repating moohphase chrono pocketwatch. One of three made went for something like $13 million at auction setting a new records. Obsolete? You bet. That's sorta the point. But, we're dealing with extrinsic worth here, not intrinsic value or marginal utility.
The watch thing isn't about telling time for the most part. The in-joke in the watch crowd ia a "watch idiot savant" or "WIS": a guy that stares at his watch for an hour but deosn't know what time it is. He's staring at the dial, the applied markers, the hands, what have you. The watch as art might be a good way of thinking about this.
The attraction is a tiny case with up to hundreds of parts in it that all do something and are probably very highly finished, shiney and damn near pefect. And like Lays chips... you probbaly can't stop at one. So, if this bug bites you (phear this!) you'll probbaly up with, uh, quite a few. It is a sickness, no cure is desired.
I'm currently wearing a 60's Rodania Valjoux Caliber 72 chrono [1] and have no use for quartz gizmotronic fluff. I use the chronograph at least once a day and bottom line: mechanical ones are still more reliable and servicable than quartz ones and are cheaper to fix. In 50 years I'll still be able to get parts for this watch. In 10 years getting a quartz module for a Movado will almost certainly be impossible - it's merely "extremely difficult" at the moment.
I suspect the author of the referenced article doesn't know much about watches.
[1] You'll need to go to http://support.open-rsc.org/ to be able to see this.
Need Mercedes parts ?