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A “right to repair” movement tools up

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Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#51
post #48
post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Now, when Steam decides that you have violated their ToS in some way, they will close your account and lock you out of everything you bought. This happens, rarely, but happens. Do you want to be dependant on an idea of a corporation that they will treat you fair? Are you OK to give away your washing machine and oven just because you had troubles with finances and you missed one payment?

You have a point, but if the law catches up with this idea, then I don't think this should be a problem. I.e., stronger rights for people who use services.

Goods and services are always (and will always be) separate for those at the top of the economic food chain. Why should it be different for those who are less privileged? Looks like a likely avenue for exploiting or at least taking control/power/freedom from other people.

Don’t count on service quality laws to make up the disparity caused by losing the right to full ownership of one’s property.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#52
post #18

Planned obsolescence is why I will never invest more than 100 euros into a phone. I will always wait to buy low-priced, fast enough for me hardware. I still remember how my macbook pro started to be slow and unusable after OSX updates. My real wish is that one day, computer or smartphone hardware might last at least 5 or even 10 years. I know software is evolving quickly, but there comes a point where I don't think y…

My previous MacBook worked 8 years - needed a battery replacement and an upgrade to a SSD. Granted it was a sluggish last year using it.

My current MacBook has lasted me 3 years already and unless something drastic happens I can see it lasting another 3 easily. Only issue is the battery replacement might be more costly (old MacBook had a removable battery). HDD performance shouldn't be a bottleneck for me either, but who knows what's around the corner in tech.

Obviously a gaming computer or something meant for advanced computing isn't going to last that long.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#53
post #29

Does anyone know what the best, most-serviceable laptop is in 2017? Looking for something with decent hardware and Linux support. It seems like the trend is toward soldered-on parts.

I have a Thinkpad T-430 and the thing's great. I can strip it down to just the motherboard and display in less than 5 minutes.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#54
post #42

Why don't we just pay for services instead of buying products? This pushes the problem of maintenance to the service provider, thus making it more efficient and thus cheaper and more environment-friendly. Also, it completely eliminates the problem of planned obsolescence. There are some downsides, such as that usage of the service outside the contract becomes impossible, so contracts should be sufficiently broad (and…

I had this album on Spotify or Deezer, one of my favourites. One day something happened and it became un-listenable. It's like Sony came and picked a CD from my shelf. Well luckily there is YouTube. But with actual tools, like tractors, it's different. Tools tend to get personalised/modified to fit the particular routines of their users.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#56
post #20

I will admit that I am not a fan of the "right to repair" movement in terms of what I've seen from it so far when it comes to actual legislative proposals, and I also find a lot of the way it talks down to current consumers and market forces distasteful and short sighted. I can absolutely see how in some areas of production narrowly tailored rules might be beneficial in terms of efforts manufacturers make to prevent…

> I actively do not want anyone but Apple to be able to mess with the hardware authentication chain on my iPhone Why doesn't encryption sidestep this issue for you?

How does encryption sidestep this issue at all?

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#57
post #6

I hope at some point we'll start including recycling/disassembly and replacement externalities into price somehow. I don't know how you would do that in a fair way, but it is frustrating that there aren't a ton of corrective market forces to encourage manufacturers to make highly reusable, repairable, recyclable devices. All of this electronics churn is environmentally terrible, and it's frustrating that, as with car…

That already happens, but on a different scale. When Apple has to repair or replace an iPhone, they're giving you a remanufactured iPhone using reused internal parts like screws or shielding. This is factored into the costs of an iPhone which keeps them 'lower' / profit margins higher.

Unfortunately, what ends up happening in most cases is that people make products, give them a ridiculous 1y or 2y warranty, then claim that if there're any problems after that time period you'll have to pay to repair or replace.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#58
post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I actively do not want anyone but Apple to be able to mess with the hardware authentication chain on my iPhone Why doesn't encryption sidestep this issue for you?

How does encryption sidestep this issue at all?

The whole point of the security of TouchID hardware is to prevent someone else from authenticating as you by messing with the hardware. But that becomes a non-issue when your data is encrypted, since a thief wouldn't have the password to decrypt it anyway.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#59
post #28
post #18

Planned obsolescence is why I will never invest more than 100 euros into a phone. I will always wait to buy low-priced, fast enough for me hardware. I still remember how my macbook pro started to be slow and unusable after OSX updates. My real wish is that one day, computer or smartphone hardware might last at least 5 or even 10 years. I know software is evolving quickly, but there comes a point where I don't think y…

In my recent experience, my Mac has got faster after each macOS update. They seem to be putting a lot of effort into performance. I'm just not seening the evidence of this "planned obsolescence". I would put it on the level of a conspiracy theory. Little hard evidence in favour, but anecdoes accepted as fact by those inclined to believe them. As a counter-anecdote, as it happens I'm typing this on my 2011 Mac mini, m…

Apple products don't really seem to display this much. Maybe it's why (or because) they cost twice as much as products from other manufacturers.

Re: A “right to repair” movement tools up

#60
post #53
post #29

Does anyone know what the best, most-serviceable laptop is in 2017? Looking for something with decent hardware and Linux support. It seems like the trend is toward soldered-on parts.

I have a Thinkpad T-430 and the thing's great. I can strip it down to just the motherboard and display in less than 5 minutes.

I don't know if suggesting a laptop from a company that uses DRM to lock out 3rd party batteries is something suitable in this thread.
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