31–40 of 143 posts
I love the comment that says you could make a device that requires you to unplug and plug the other way before it works, no matter what.
At least then the insertion effort is O(1): you know in advance it will take two tries. Even that is an upgrade over pre-C USB, in my view.
I love the comment that says you could make a device that requires you to unplug and plug the other way before it works, no matter what.
I believe to properly conform to the USB specification, the device must be tried one way, tried the other way, then tried the first way again before it plugs in properly.
Though, in all seriousness, it would make an interesting security through obscurity feature. Everything works fine with the device, but only allows/shows certain features/files after Satan's rotation pattern. More secret squirrel than "security" in reality.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I believe to properly conform to the USB specification, the device must be tried one way, tried the other way, then tried the first way again before it plugs in properly.
You forget the chicken bones and the tears of a Virgin step.
You and everyone else.
I knew this was not going to be ideal in the late '90's when USB 1 came out.
Radio Shack was still going strong but this was the first PC connector that you could not purchase plugs or jacks for to solder your own. Also no suitable 4-conductor cable.
Even though the USB 1 approach was for a 92 foot maximum cable length (since it was only intended for the low-bandwidth webcams at the time) this was rapdily nonpublicized since USB 2 was already in planning, for much faster speed and a 25 foot max cable length, eventually shortened to 16 feet.
Well once you got suitable cable, you still had to cut pigtails off of USB cords so you could get the cable ends.
I feel like USB-C is cursed enough on its own. The sheer number of times I’ve had to explain to family members why just because the two USB-C ports on a laptop look the same, doesn’t mean they work the same.
This is true of electrical power outlets (15A/20A), HDMI, schrader valves, RJ45 (this one especially!), and many other things in life, and I don't think it's very fair to pick on USB-C in this manner when it does so many other things much better than previous alternatives.
You mean that one can hold 15A and the other - 20A? If so, they do work the same, they just have different capacities (like a tap, some of them will provide more water, others less but they work the same (especially if they look the same))
Earlier quoted context omitted.
But the point is that USB was introduced more or less on the promise of not being like that. When USB 1.1 came in the late 90s, it was pretty nice. Lots of different ports and cables went away, and all were replaced by standardized USB ports and cables. You could geek out and learn the difference of upstream (A, host) and downstream (B, device) ports, the various types of B port sizes, and that was it. Later USB 2.0…
For consumers, wasn't USB 3.0 just USB 2.0 but a few times faster? USB-C is what is confusing to some people. Replacing micro USB was straightforward enough, but replacing USB-A is a rough process.
I feel like USB-C is cursed enough on its own. The sheer number of times I’ve had to explain to family members why just because the two USB-C ports on a laptop look the same, doesn’t mean they work the same.
This is true of electrical power outlets (15A/20A), HDMI, schrader valves, RJ45 (this one especially!), and many other things in life, and I don't think it's very fair to pick on USB-C in this manner when it does so many other things much better than previous alternatives.
You do see NEMA 5-15R receptacles on 20A circuits in residential applications, but that's probably because most appliances don't require 20 amps. A 5-15 connector has two vertical prongs, a 5-20 has a horizontal and a vertical, with the special case of receptacles with a T slot that fits both 5-15 and 5-20 plugs.
It goes a bit deeper than that though: A NEMA 6-20 also has a horizontal and vertical prong, but they're reversed from a 5-20 so you can't plug them in in an incompatible (and likely hazardous) way.
The whole standard is really well thought out. I went down the rabbit hole when I got an old table saw with a 6-20 plug and had to figure out what the hell to plug it in to (dryer outlet, via a "custom" extension cord).
I feel like I haven't seen too many uses of Schrader valves that are likely to cause havoc. Most of the use cases for them besides tires are pretty obviously special and distinct from one another. I mean, I'd hope nobody's ever hooked a bike pump up to their air conditioner or a can of R134a to a tire...
Earlier quoted context omitted.
At least then the insertion effort is O(1): you know in advance it will take two tries. Even that is an upgrade over pre-C USB, in my view.
I do prefer mechanical feedback over software feedback.
I feel like USB-C is cursed enough on its own. The sheer number of times I’ve had to explain to family members why just because the two USB-C ports on a laptop look the same, doesn’t mean they work the same.
This is already a solved problem[1] through color coding. Not sure why they couldn't use that scheme. Maybe combine a few to indicate things like DisplayPort and Thunderbolt capability, could have up to four quadrants for example.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PC_System_Design_Guide#Color-c...
Now I want a USB-C thumb drive that has different data on different sides. Like the old 5 1/4" diskette drives where you flipped the disk for double capacity. Using it for retro-gaming would be fun. When the game says "Flip the Disk" you flip the USB drive.
I often have to flip old Lightning cables if there is corrosion on one side of the plug contacts. Also, Lightning has a problem with dirt and lint accumulation, so the end of a large paperclip is useful to clean-out the port on the device occasionally.
Frequent problem indeed with dirt from pockets, but I'd recommend a toothpick over something metal.
Edit: as long as you're not using a needle-like piece of metal to dig at or bend the contacts, it should be fine.