tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post3073698297172713551..comments2024-03-25T08:42:25.940+01:00Comments on Retro Tech Geneva: Typecast: A Great FeelingAdwoahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00457285629002149759noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-20275883528161731192012-03-18T18:18:37.845+01:002012-03-18T18:18:37.845+01:00"It's hard to feel good about purchasing ..."It's hard to feel good about purchasing anything these days." That really says it all, doesn't it?<br />Wonderful post!notagainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02915679111849352765noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-65887544250854464892012-03-18T12:55:31.919+01:002012-03-18T12:55:31.919+01:00Thanks, Teeritz, you picked up on exactly what I w...Thanks, Teeritz, you picked up on exactly what I was trying to say and expanded on it. I was trying to think the other day of how many (mechanical) items of that age will continue to work well with proper use and care: typewriters, sewing machines, cars, bikes, clocks & watches... <br /><br />Typewriters have a survival advantage because they are not in continuous use, unlike clocks and Adwoahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00457285629002149759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-28759850293189734632012-03-18T12:43:50.655+01:002012-03-18T12:43:50.655+01:00"Top-of-the-line at the time"... that sa..."Top-of-the-line at the time"... that says it all. What a thrill to acquire such an item for a song, be it a typewriter or another piece of fine workmanship. I am envious of your Dymo-Tape labeler and will see if there is a similar item to be found locally during my thrifting trips!Adwoahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00457285629002149759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-73269267318860172572012-03-18T12:26:22.668+01:002012-03-18T12:26:22.668+01:00As Teeritz puts it in his comment, there are not m...As Teeritz puts it in his comment, there are not many products with "numerous moving parts and intricate machinery" that continue to work quite so well several decades after their manufacture, so it was completely satisfying on every level to bring the rescued Hermes Media 3 back to life - even more so for the benefit of a doubting observer!Adwoahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00457285629002149759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-69648347995143258782012-03-18T12:23:49.757+01:002012-03-18T12:23:49.757+01:00Thanks for the comments, Richard. Now I cannot wai...Thanks for the comments, Richard. Now I cannot wait to hear this week's episode of This American Life (via podcast) after your excellent summary! It is a shame that Daisey felt the need to make up parts of his story - the enduring image from that first episode was when he described droves of workers walking up to him and telling him about their experiences and injuries. And to learn that was Adwoahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00457285629002149759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-26536871927378775892012-03-18T12:01:07.594+01:002012-03-18T12:01:07.594+01:00Thanks for your thoughtful comments, Bill. Indeed,...Thanks for your thoughtful comments, Bill. Indeed, it is demoralizing to observe how overrun the shops are with foreign-made goods, cheaply-made and virtually disposable. I don't go shopping often and usually manage to stay clear of electronics shops especially, so every time I end up in one I am newly taken aback. It is hard to believe even the simplest of items and trinkets - cannot somehowAdwoahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00457285629002149759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-24021954047203128572012-03-18T04:47:14.237+01:002012-03-18T04:47:14.237+01:00There'a certain nobility about a product that ...There'a certain nobility about a product that can still be used 50+ years after it was built. I'm not talking about hammers or cocktail shakers, but about products with numerous moving parts and intricate machinery. I suppose that's what first attracted me to wristwatches and later to typewriters. And if I could afford it, I'd probably be driving a 1947 Plymouth or something like teeritzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05421337385763144173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-21957201405469875152012-03-18T01:08:09.072+01:002012-03-18T01:08:09.072+01:00Your very provocative post reminds me why I enjoy ...Your very provocative post reminds me why I enjoy browsing thrift stores so much: possibly finding an object that is <br />1. vintage (historical) <br />2. well-made <br />3. worth saving from a land-fill <br />4. inexpensive <br />5. avoid supporting the "modern" wastefulness of consumerism<br /><br />This applies to ANY object found at a thrift store -- not just typewriters. <br />Cameronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11633967390492270136noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-46338050479719866272012-03-17T22:08:16.461+01:002012-03-17T22:08:16.461+01:00Something I forgot in my overly long reply .. Foxc...Something I forgot in my overly long reply .. Foxconn, being one of the competitors of 2 of the companies where I previously worked has never been a company I liked. Not only do they undercut every one on prices, the quality is next to the lowest possible and the way they treat their employees!!! What was on This American Live was an improvement of employee treatment of several hundred times Bill Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14649212489891769390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-82821780174681187402012-03-17T20:23:12.743+01:002012-03-17T20:23:12.743+01:00I listened to some of today's This American Li...I listened to some of today's This American Life, which was devoted completely to the tale of how they ended up running Mike Daisey's partially false story on the Apple factories. Today's episode is quite riveting in itself. They ask Daisey point-blank why he lied, and it is fascinating to listen to the silence as he tries to come up with ways to find ambiguity in the situation. He Richard Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16232053429935587826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-30005426919484322242012-03-17T18:14:13.138+01:002012-03-17T18:14:13.138+01:00Adwoa, thanks for this well-written piece, your vi...Adwoa, thanks for this well-written piece, your views certainly resonate with mine. And I have to say, I really enjoyed your anecdote on how you responded to your colleague's puzzlement on your Hermes Media 3 rescue operation; you non-verbally retorted, "Take that!"<br /><br />Richard, thanks for the info on Olivetti's fair labor practices... now I've found even greater Ton S. https://www.blogger.com/profile/10691201724230891974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-20379059737910577032012-03-17T17:15:15.784+01:002012-03-17T17:15:15.784+01:00Well put, Adwoa, particularly on the privacy issue...Well put, Adwoa, particularly on the privacy issues.<br /><br />Exploitation of labor has been around since before the pyramids, and of course conditions in the typical Western factory before many labor laws were passed, or even after, were no better than those in China today. In the '30s, there were several strikes at Remington, and apparently the company crushed them by any means necessary.Richard Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16232053429935587826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6021475418975786274.post-51998224118660436122012-03-17T15:16:03.227+01:002012-03-17T15:16:03.227+01:00I feel much the same.
I do not, or have yet to ...I feel much the same. <br /><br />I do not, or have yet to fall for the global warming. It'd take more than the comment space for my thoughts on that. I too wonder constantly about the food, mostly the safety of the food and with what it was treated. Clothing at one time was made by children, then I remember the many women who worked numerous textile and clothing factories in our small Bill Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14649212489891769390noreply@blogger.com