Why is it prohibited? asked the savage...
The controller shrugged his shoulders. "Because it is old, that's the chief reason. We haven't any use for old things here."
"Even when they are beautiful?"
"Particularly when they are beautiful. Beauty's attractive, and we don't want people attracted by old things. We want them to like new ones."
Giles Slade quotes Aldous Huxley from Brave New World's brilliant attack on consumerism, in Made to Break: Technology and Obsolescence in America, about the design and marketing of goods so as to encourage their replacement. It's not that the actual items break, of course sometimes they do, but it's about creating something newer and better that people want to replace their supposedly now-obsolete item.
What do you think about "planned obsolescence"? What technology item "wasn't good enough" faster than you expected? What's been sticking around much longer than you expected?
It happened when GM introduced "model years" for cars, and it happens in technology all the time. Slade was asked by a reviewer at Grist: How do we undo this cycle of consumption? "A lot of really sophisticated people devoted a lot of time and thought to developing this system," he says. "We need to look at the problem creatively and rethink it. Our whole economy is based on buying, trashing, and buying again. We need to rethink industrial design."
-From Treehugger.
PS AT:HT recommends that you check this book out from your library, or at least find an electronic copy of it, possibly also through your library.
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Comments (6)
Actually planning for something to be obsolete sucks, but at least in this day of ebay/craigslist/goodwill things are getting reused and (hopefully) staying out of landfills.
My best "electronic" that has lasted way longer than I ever thought it would is a toaster I bought at Goodwill for $2 in 2000. Seven years later and it's still going strong!
Something that didn't last as long as I thought it would though... My whirlpool dishwasher. True, I didn't buy it, but when it broke and I pulled it out I realized that it was only two years old (datestamp). It hadn't worked well for a year of that time, and now it's at the dump (though at least it'll be recycled).
My IBM PS/1, the joint venture with Sears that was universally derided, was still going strong after 6 years of use, including multiple car trips so that it could be used as a portable. That thing was tough.
That was a 286 chip. I finally dumped it because my work used software that required a Pentium. Not one of the subsequent laptops (or a few desktop towers that were the husband's idea) have had anything like the same durability.
We're still using my boyfriend's mother's first television, which she bought in the early 70's - It's black and white, only gets broadcast channels (Rabbit Ears!), but it's perfectly fine for us - we don't watch a whole lot of TV. I actually prefer it to color TV's when watching crime shows - the blood and gore of CSI is a lot more tollerable in black and white. I've heard something (I think here on AT) about this type of broadcasting being phased out in the next couple of years, so I guess we will have to get something new, but this thing has sure had a long life! I'm concerned that we won't be able to find anything I like as much when we buy a new one - I DON'T want a monsterous screen, and I want to at least have the option of black and white...
Rosie - here's the roundup of relevant posts related to the transition, bookmark it for future reference! =)
The news: the end is near!
What you need to know: An entire website dedicated to answering your questions; namely, you'll need to buy a converter box to still be able to use your TV (and I'd agree about CSI being less gory, though I've never actually watched it that way, I could imagine!)
You can get a $40 subsidy towards the purchase of the converter (which, at least when the date is nearer, we'd recommend, because it's a limited amount of funds that will likely run out)
So, it would seem, Rosie, the end of your early 70's TV isn't as near as you might think!
Things that died (or are close to it): Cordless mini-vacs (esp. the shark), my 3rd gen ipod, my fiance's mini cooper (hate, hate, hate, that car)
Things that last forever: Roland 303, technics 1200s
I was thinking about some of the things I've had for a very long time. Oster blender, stand mixer - since 1973. On the other hand, fair weather friends have been various laptops - 3 years max, little power driven tools - drill/drivers, dust buster, cordless phone etc. that stopped holding a charge becoming useless. I drive a 14 yr. old Volvo that I still think of as my new car and is a good car because of the maintenance its received - no desire for a new car as long as it remains reliable.
My daughter's iPod have been entirely unreliable to the point we keep an extended warranty because they seem to die once a year. She's had 4 in 4 years, two of those have been warranty replacements so when she upgraded last winter we purchased another extended warranty with the full expectation it will be used.