The thing is, usually the mistakes made by a computer appear obvious, as in "even an idiot wouldn't make that mistake". For example, a human would have to have really big problems with hearing or language to hear "make a payment" as "cancel my account". If the sound quality is bad the human would ask me to repeat what I said, I would say it slower or say the same thing in other words.

Same thing with cars, people can understand the limits of other people (well, I guess I probably wouldn't be able to avoid the dog too, it probably ran out too fast), and when a software bug causes a self-driving car to crash, it will be something like "the dog was crossing the road from the other side, the car started turning towards the dog and hit another car while attempting to deliberately run over a dog).

Also, to err is human (or so the saying goes), but a machine should operate without mistakes or it is broken (the engine of my car runs badly when it is cold - but that's not because the car doesn't "want" to go or doesn't "like" cold, it's just that some part in it is defective (most likely the carburetor needs cleaning and new seals)).

Because fuel injection usually comes with electronics (there were some mechanical types, but those are not common) and worse than that, electronics with software (closed source of course). A carburetor is simpler, well at least the constant depression ones are. So, carbs are easier to repair. Also, an engine with a carburetor does not need the fuel at high pressure, so it has a lower electrical load (useful if you are trying to push start the car with an almost dead battery - hopefully it has enough power left for the spark).

Spray some WD40 in the door lock before it gets too cold (or after you manage to get the ice out).

I too dislike modern cars. I would rather have an old car that's easier to understand (there either is no software running on it or the software is very simple) than the new ones full of closed source software (that is so complex that I most likely would not understand it even if I had the source).

I have an old car, a 1982 Mercedes W123. If for whatever reason I had or wanted to buy another car, I would buy a car older than 1985 with an engine that has a carburetor.

The steering in my car does not lock until I remove the key from the ignition. Just turning off the ignition does not lock the steering. However, this was probably improved in the 32 years since my car was made so modern cars probably lock the steering if the engine is turned off (or dies on its own).

Power brakes would still work with the engine off and car in gear, since the engine is being turned by the wheels and is producing vacuum.

Yes, and unlike more modern tapes it is made of paper, the brand name is "Soundmirror". The paper tape can snap in some tape decks (like the Revox A77), but in a tape deck with servo tension or on that has one motor (the tension is lower on these) it plays OK. It was recorded full track, but it looks like only in the center - if played on a 4 track tape deck, only the right channel plays.

This is because the data density is so low. However, modern media (recordable CDs, DVDs, hard drives, flash memory) do not hold onto their data for very long. Hard drives might retain the magnetization, but their mechanical parts can wear out (if it's on all the time) or just fail (if it's off all the time, heads can stick or lubrication can harden and it's not like you can oil the hard drive like a floppy or tape drive).

OTOH, analog tape (video or audio) retains the data for very long time (I have a tape recorded in 1951 and it still plays OK) and the machines that play it can be maintained and repaired and are still quite available (used).

Yes and analog tapes are also quite good for long term storage - you can store a tape for 20-30 years without a problem, while digital media (other than digital tapes) cannot be stored for this long, they need constant copying.

Either when Microsoft allows others to patch it or finally manages to make a product without so may faults that it needs constant repair.

It's been more than 10 years and Microsoft still has not managed to provide a working product.

Not all jobs are like that. For example, I work as a sysadmin and sometimes I do get to work overtime if something important fails or if what I have to do cannot be done during normal work hours (because it will disrupt the service). However, I cannot choose to work overtime because I need the money, the clients would not like that (as they would be charged more).

So, I repair my electronic devices or my car, unless I do not know how to solve that particular problem or do not have the skills/tools necessary to do it (for example, I do not know how to weld, so I cannot patch a rusted hole in my car).

Syberia, Sanitarium, American McGee's Alice, The Longest Journey, Secret Files, Broken Sword, Shelrock Holmes games and other adventure games would be kinda pointless without interesting and consistent plot.

OTOH, sure, Counter Strike or Team Fortress do not need a complicated plot.

What would the govt of some place like Egypt have given for a phone kill switch?

Nothing. All governments have a cellphone kill switch that affects an area.Just turn off the towers in that area and no phone will work. And I doubt that the government would go trough the trouble of identifying the protesters one by one and just disabling their phone (which can be done now, just block the IMEI).

The idea behind this is that the phone somehow discovers that it was stolen and then bricks itself, deleting all the data. If somebody stole my phone, the thief would not get service (after I notified the police and the provider), but he would still have my data. And.he could rewrite the IMEI to something else to get service.

Some protesters could have older phones without the kill switch. So, the more appropriate method is to ask (nicely, or send some guys with guns) the cell service providers to shut down all towers in the required area. This method works on all phones.

Cellphones are short range devices - if the government wants to, it can shut all of them down. Same with the internet.

What you need is a satellite phone and ham radio if you want to evade the government's attempts to silence you, for a while anyway.

What about Terminal Services? It may be a server, but it may be used by lots of regular users like a mainframe was used in the past instead of running IIS, Exchange or something like that.