Lots of devices, like AC motors require AC to run. This includes air conditioning systems and refrigerators, which are the biggest power users in a typical home
Modern AC-DC power supplies are much more efficient than the article claims
But, the biggest reason this is silly is the ENORMOUSLY HUGE number of existing devices that run on AC
Maybe, maybe it might make sense for a VERY small number of VERY specialized devices in new construction
Looks to me like marketoids chasing buzzwords
Car companies should concentrate on making cars and leave the fashionable electronics to the fashionable electronic manufacturers
I wonder how many cars still have built-in analog cellphones? or built-in cassette players?
The ONLY thing that should be built-in is a speaker system, tuned to the acoustics of the car, with an amplifier and aux jack
ALL other "infotainment" devices should be separate
..seems to be forgotten
Old time programmers remember squeezing every bit of performance out of a system
I remember doing image processing on a 4MHz 8088, in 1986, in assembly
Modern processors are INSANELY powerful..yet, most of the power is wasted on layers and layers of crap that incompetent programmers don't even realize is there
We need to re-discover efficiency in programming
Simple programs used by the general public could conceivably be served from the cloud to a browser
Even for those simple things, many people will still prefer local data and local control
I find it hard to imagine that serious stuff like CAD, video editing, digital audio workstations, etc could ever be forced into this model
I, for one, require local data, local software and local control..and I will NEVER rent software
..or an electrician, or a carpenter, or a gardener or any other profession where physical presence is required to do the job
If virtual presence is good enough, you can be anywhere with good internet
..that they are totally honest and competent, and that weakening security will only hurt the bad guys
In the real world, government security is done by people who actually want to work for the government..if you're at the bottom of the technological barrel..hey, a job is a job..and government jobs have job security. Yeah, I have to take a drug test..but that's OK..I don't use illegal drugs (within the testing window)
If you are on the other side of the fence..all that matters is technical competence
You might be a criminal, or a terrorist, or someone who is just pissed off..but IF you have the ability to exploit the weaknesses that are intentionally introduced, under the pretext of national security..you will win
..of the personal computer era
Most of the speculations about how personal computers would be used were wrong..comically wrong
Most of the articles I see today about the Internet of Things seem silly, comically silly (NO, I don't want my refrigerator to order anything)
I suspect that there may actually be some useful ways to put "things" on the internet..we just haven't invented them yet
Why not use the grid as a reservoir..like a battery or capacitor?
When your local production exceeds your demand..push the rest into the reservoir
When you have a deficit..draw from it
Many people who advocate being off the grid are extreme isolationists..who value isolation over practicality
Sometimes, being a bit dependent, and interconnected, is good
..from registering their name in the
It should only be available to their critics
Otherwise..why bother?
Who would want to go to McDonalds.sucks to see a pro-McDonalds ad?
..it's a computer figuring out how to beat a computer at a kinda simple game
The real world is a bit harder
Still..well done!
They should dump the "content" divisions..the movie studio and record company
The "content" divisions crippled innovation by insisting that the first priority must be content restrictions
They should shift their focus from style to substance
The "style" advocates crippled innovation by insisting that the first priority must be fashion
They should do whatever it takes to return to being the world's best electronics company
Regardless of your skill, some devices are designed to be throwaway
Some are assembled with glue or welding
Some are completely encased in plastic by potting or overmolding
Some components, like ICs in BGA packaging, cannot easily be replaced with common tools
Many manufacturers don't offer repair parts..at any price
Sometimes, manufacturers grind off the identifying information on common parts to make repair and reverse engineering more difficult
Schematics and repair manuals are often completely unavailable, or very expensive
Many products require special tools that are unavailable at any price
Even if you have the skill to build your own tools, software interface documentation is rarely available, and often the interface is obfuscated
I have been building stuff, fixing stuff and reverse engineering stuff for many, many years
Yes, I agree that fixing stuff is a valuable skill that should be taught and not allowed to die
But, much of the fault lies with the manufacturers who aggressively resist any attempt by users to gain control over their devices
This practice should be illegal, we should have the legal right to fix stuff we own if we have the knowledge to do so
Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River published a homebrew recipe for Pliny the Elder along with a detailed description of how he designed it
Mitch Steele of Stone wrote a book on IPA which included recipes for many of Stone's beers
Craft brewing and homebrewing have a long and interconnected history
Many craft brewers started as homebrewers and many craft breweries own homebrew supply stores and support homebrew clubs
The craft brewers I have visited freely answered any questions I asked
It's the same everywhere
Instead of our current system where work/school starts at 8:00 and we adjust our clocks to compensate for the season, it would make more sense for schools and businesses to adjust their hours based on the season
Agreed
It's hard to imagine any site allowing 1,000,000 bad guesses
It probably varies by site, but methinks anything over 100 or so would trigger a response
Even if the limit was 1000, same outcome
Those who can, do; those who can't, write. Those who can't write work for the Bell Labs Record.
