Ken Blake, MVP wrote:
On Thu, 28 May 2015 06:21:36 -0600, Ken Springer
wrote:

On 5/28/15 6:17 AM, Mayayana wrote:

Just because new
technology is available that doesn't necessarily mean it's
better.)
+1 on the last sentence. G


I also agree. However, as far as I'm concerned, new technology is
better than older technology the great majority of the time.


Until someone finds the caveats in it, and shines a light on it.

*******

That 4GB/sec PCI Express connector in your new PC ? It only
delivers data at ~2GB/sec. The cause ? Intel using too-small
buffers on the bus host controller.

That new-fangled USB3 technology ? The USB3 cable stretching
from the back of your PC, emits RF signals in the 2.4GHz band,
wiping out Wifi/Bluetooth/Wireless Keyboard for people.

Not everything new, is unblemished.

How about this one ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HomePlu...rline_Alliance

Even though nominally, that one has frequency notches to
prevent spill into other RF bands, that device causes
the ham operator next door, to no longer be able to
pick up distant signals. Your ham radio operator next
door, is ****ed at you. Of course, calling the FCC or
DOC doesn't work, because the device is "nominally compliant",
not really truly a non-interfering device.

Or even Wifi devices, where someone with an 802.11N
and three antennas and a "power booster", tries to
wipe the floor with your home Wifi LAN. And suddenly your
Wifi doesn't work.

Yes, new technology is wonderful.

SSDs that brick themselves.
Hard drives that brick themselves.
Every device with a processor in it, that can get hacked.

It's a brave new world.

I can see that new self driving car I bought,
drive off a cliff some day, while some kids
with an Android on an adjacent hillside, watch...
Coming to a theater near you.

As a savvy consumer, you can do your part by not
accepting new technology that has holes in it. For
example, do I need smart lightbulbs I can control
from my Android ? Or is a regular light switch
and bulb, safe and effective ? Your choice.

*******

The other day, we had a power brownout here.
What technologies alerted me ?

1) The old-fashioned UPS shut down. It detected 93 VAC
was too low, so it switched to batteries. A new-fangled
UPS with AVR, would not have said a word. The AVR
feature would have boosted the voltage for you.

2) An incandescent light bulb in my bathroom, confirmed
the low voltage problem. The LED lightbulbs my
computer room uses, are self-regulating, and put out
as much light at 100VAC as at 115VAC. They cannot
alert me to trouble.

And as near as I can tell, none of my neighbors on
the street, even noticed. So the new technologies
helped hide the details. Only someone boiling a
kettle, and noticing it was taking twice as long
to boil a kettle, might have noticed.

So yeah, I love new technology. Sure glad I didn't
replace the old UPS with a new one. As it alerted
me to trouble right away, with a persistent beep
tone. It even automatically shut off the computer
I'm using right now (so I finally got to confirm
that feature works).

It's a shame my hydro (power) company doesn't know
how to run a utility. They've done this before,
brownout on purpose while switching the wiring plan
of the neighborhood. I don't know why I have to be
the guy to phone up and complain. And then they
pretend "we're already working on it". Bull****!

The reason I'm a bit ****ed about this stuff, is
they came close to damaging my refrigerator.
The fridge switched on, and the compressor nearly
didn't come up to speed. It could have "cooked"
and even if the thermal cutout on it was still
working, one thermal event might have been enough
to ruin it. My fridge isn't exactly new.

Paul