[Coco] An interesting computer repair story

Thu May 3 22:32:08 EDT 2012

Thank you Paulo, That was very refreshing. I am very interested in what one in 
the outside has to say.

> I'm Brazilian, so this is going to be something "seen from the outside".
> 
> Part of the "problem" you guys mention is also part of "solution" for which
> the American society is so admired.
> 
> The fact that producing NEW stuff has become cheaper and cheaper made it
> more affordable to more and more people, which, in turn, increased sales
> volumes and in turn made things even cheaper as fixed costs became diluted
> among a larger marketbase...
> 
> Take a pair of jeans, for instance; you can buy a regular size 38/34 in
> your nearest Walmart for almost less than USD10 + tax.  If you really want
> to show off, you can buy it with a nice brand (Tommy Hilfiger,
> BrooksBrothers) in an outlet for something around USD 20 + tax.  Here in
> Brazil, the SAME pair would cost USD 100 (tax included) or more.
> 
> Now, I grant that this rationale (mass consumerism and the "throw-away"
> society) is perhaps NOT the best option for a number of segments in the
> economy and that same rationale is destroying a number of values the US is
> also very admired for, but overall, this is the essence which made the US
> the nation it is today.
> 
> I think that the answer, as Buddha would put, lies in the "middle".
>  Somewhere, a line must be drawn between what is "discardable" and what is
> "fixable" and how much one is willing to pay for the two things.
> 
> As for myself, being an Engineer in formation, I love fixing things, but I
> need to balance this "urge" with time with the "better half" and the kids
> and also time to make money, because very much like in the US, Brazil is
> shifting towards become a "full-time consumer society"....
> 
> Maybe this whole "eco-stuff" that is trendy these days is about finding a
> new balance between "make" and "fix"... Go figure...
> 
> My $0.02 of philosophy here... ;)
> 
> Cheers,
> Paulo.
> 
> On Thu, May 3, 2012 at 11:07 AM, Louis Ciotti <lciotti1 at gmail.com> wrote:
> > I totally agree with you Mark.  America has become the throw away
> > society, and many of todays youth have no ambition to learn how things
> > work or how to fix things.  I grew up wanting to know how things works,
> > and was constantly taking things apart, sometimes breaking things in the
> > process. Part of the problem today is that some items can be had for
> > such a low cost many times it is just not worth reparing the items. 
> > Take my lawn mower, a simple push type mower, nothing fancy.  Well I
> > clipped a rock a while back which was large enough to cause the shaft to
> > bend just enough to cause it to vibrate.  Well I looked into the cost of
> > a new crankshaft,  around $125 + shipping/tax.  For a few bucks more a
> > new one can be had, and involves far less labor on my part.  Old
> > electronics are the same in many peoples eyes.  Why fix the old one when
> > a new one can be had so cheaply.  Lets face it if a new monitor was in
> > the $500-$600 range  you would see far more people opting to repair the
> > older ones.  Same goes for computers.  When was the last time you seen a
> > company offer an "upgrade kit"... Remember the old evergreen processor
> > upgrades?  When a new computer can be had for $300 at walmart why would
> > anyone upgrade an older one.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > On Thu, May 3, 2012 at 9:49 AM, Mark Marlette <mmarlette at frontiernet.net
> > 
> > >wrote:
> > > Not singling you out here but this is the problem with society
> > 
> > today....It
> > 
> > > is easier to just throw it out and go buy new. I can't, I can't.
> > > 
> > > Robert could have done that as well, but he wanted to see what 'made it
> > > tick' and was successful. Nice job Robert. I look at it as, heck it is
> > > already broke, so what harm can I do to take a look? I can fix
> > > anything, that was evident by just getting rid of a TV from my
> > > Grandmother that
> > 
> > past
> > 
> > > away many years ago and I fixed for her several times. I couldn't let
> > > it
> > 
> > go
> > 
> > > and it had to be 25+ years old. It was her gift to me after she past,
> > > but eventually I had to let the old Zenith go. :)
> > > 
> > > Had a brief conversation with my son this past weekend as he commented
> > > to me 'that he isn't as smart as Dad and can't do these things'. I
> > > replied,
> > 
> > do
> > 
> > > you think I was born with this knowledge? I work hard and spend many
> > 
> > hours
> > 
> > > learning, the same things you could learn, if you truly wanted to. He
> > > didn't want to talk anymore about it. :) He is 27.
> > > 
> > > Electronics are electronics, just packaged differently for it's final
> > > application. What is learned in a monitor can apply to many electronic
> > > items.
> > > 
> > > Mark
> > > http://www.cloud9tech.com
> > 
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