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The Periodic Table of Tools

periodictableoftools.com

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Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#61

Post by schoen »

demondemidi wrote: post #51
synthos wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Definitely buybait and a shame that a blatant advertisement has made to YC news front page. What's next? Novelty toothpaste for nerds?

> Novelty toothpaste for nerds? One that changes color the longer you brush so that you know you've brushed sufficiently (and not just blood-red to indicate your gums are now bleeding). One that changes color based on where the calculus on your teeth accumulated, so you can target you brushing. One that does the brushing for you, just keep it in your mouth for 3 minutes and rinse. Oh lord...

> One that changes color based on where the calculus on your teeth accumulated, so you can target you brushing.

This exists, although for some reason I'm not aware that it's available as part of a toothpaste. (Maybe the toothpaste foam would create false positive indications by making it seem to accumulate in places that don't actually have plaque.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disclosing_tablets

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#62

Post by [deleted] »

CoastalCoder wrote: post #50

Since this is just begging to be hung in a workshop / man-cave, I'd like to mention a related poster: [0] Extra legit because Nick Offerman's non-acting job is running a woodworking shop. [0] https://www.nbcstore.com/products/parks-and-recreation-swans...

[deleted]

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#63

Post by gumby »

smeej wrote: post #20

This has a great auxiliary use for those of us who don't know about all the tools, and/or don't know the names of the tools. It's going to make me sound a lot less stupid at the hardware store!

One of the great things about having a German speaking kid is the number of books that show all the entries in a given category (e.g. a huge book with hundreds of earth moving apparatus and the specific name of each)

In America I could only get close with farm animals and guns.

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#64

Post by furyofantares »

chongli wrote: post #39

I really like the idea but it needs to be a giant poster. On my 13" laptop screen it's so tiny and so compact that it presents an all-out high-frequency visual information assault on my senses. It's very unsettling and uncomfortable to use, for that reason. I really just want everything to be spread out a bit more.

It is http://home.theodoregray.com/printed-products

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#65

Post by 082349872349872 »

remram wrote: post #36
kbutler wrote: post #9

Was I alone in expecting software engineering tools?

It would probably be very interesting, since everything old is new. A column with RRD/Graphite/Grafana, inetd/systems/Kubernetes, fat/ext2/btrfs, Lustre/GlusterFS/Ceph, grep/ack/ripgrep

If columns were arranged as "can be used as a quick and dirty substitute for" going up and "subsumes but is often overkill for" going down I guess we'd wind up with a Periodic Tree of Tools (with emacs and web browsers somewhere near the trunk)?

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#66

Post by batguano »

Amused to see the 10mm socket in an "in case of emergency break glass" box. So true about 10mm, though I'd lean towards the 10mm box wrench. I've disassembled many a motorcycle with not much more than that.

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#67

Post by Prcmaker »

batguano wrote: post #66

Amused to see the 10mm socket in an "in case of emergency break glass" box. So true about 10mm, though I'd lean towards the 10mm box wrench. I've disassembled many a motorcycle with not much more than that.

The emergency 10mm box used to available to purchase from a couple chain stores in Australia. I bought a good few as gifts.

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#68

Post by PTOB »

gumby wrote: post #63
smeej wrote: post #20

This has a great auxiliary use for those of us who don't know about all the tools, and/or don't know the names of the tools. It's going to make me sound a lot less stupid at the hardware store!

One of the great things about having a German speaking kid is the number of books that show all the entries in a given category (e.g. a huge book with hundreds of earth moving apparatus and the specific name of each) In America I could only get close with farm animals and guns.

Could you recommend some titles? I not only enjoy German thoroughness, but I am also tickled by the schlamminvordstogezah style of German tool naming.

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#69

Post by Prcmaker »

smeej wrote: post #20

This has a great auxiliary use for those of us who don't know about all the tools, and/or don't know the names of the tools. It's going to make me sound a lot less stupid at the hardware store!

Can't agree more. When we get tool or parts catalogues through work on the break room table, I recommend to all our graduates they spend time going through it, and to look up things they don't understand. Knowing the tool for the job already exists can save so much time and money, and while that genre of tool may change significantly, it applies to all fields of engineering.

Re: The Periodic Table of Tools

#70

Post by kortex »

As a former chemist and all-around maker, I love this and this bugs me all at once. I love the concept, but as others have pointed out, this is less a "periodic table" and more "grab bag of related things". You see these all over the place: foods, drinks, cars, etc. All table, no periodicity. Why are wrenches and drills strewn across three groups? Put the wrenches in one group, drills in the other. Impact drivers somewhere in between.

There's some vague grouping, but it's pretty hodge podge.

The way I would do it, is use electronegativity (tendency to give or remove electrons) as a proxy for additive/subtractive. Atomic weight is a proxy for actual weight/scale. Group I would be like clay forming (the OG additive process), concrete, FDM, SLS, injection molding, casting. Group II is a bit less additive, more bonding: hot glue, soldering, brazing, welding. Halogens hog out material: thermic lance, plasma cutter, laser, waterjet. Chalcogens: hand router, (power) router, lathe, mill.

Metrology doesn't add or subtract, so obviously that's your Noble group.

Transition metals are all the fasteners. Lanthanides/Actinides are all the weirdos. I'd also add a group for just the simple machines. I think it's more important to have groups, periodicity, and trends, than sticking to the exact shape/size of the periodic table of elements.

This is Theodore Gray too! Author of a bunch of books and posters on chemistry.

Well, you know what they say, if you want something done right...

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