The Last Quiet Thing • Hacker News Board

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#91

Post by TacticalCoder » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 1:05 AM UTC

Fwirt wrote: post #71

I realize the purpose of the essay, and I agree with the author's sentiment that our possessions ask more of us than is necessary, and more than ever before. But I disagree that any object is finished . That Casio that the author mentions, yes it goes 7 years without a battery change, but the day the battery dies will be the day that you have to buy a new battery, figure out how to open it, and change it. Or (as many…

Common... I've got tools I "inherited" from my grandpa that are still fine (brothers and I basically inherited the house and the tools where in the shed and whenever I go there on vacation, I use those tools to fix the house). I've got a screwdriver which I definitely remember using as a teenager, in the late 80s (and which I used for a variety of DIY jobs ever since) to assemble the trucks on my skateboards. And that screwdriver is a prized possession of mine: it's got a story. Hammers, saws, stainless steel scissors, hoses (to water the plants), multi-tool tools (don't know if they're stainless steel but they still look good), etc. Plenty of stuff still totally usable decades later.

You cannot compare tools that can outlast humans (like my grandpa and now myself) with an Apple watch that's going to be junk in a few years at most.

Even for oil that needs changing, things that needs lubricating once every blue moon (like, say, a mechanical watch): it's quite different to drop a tiny bit of lubricant inside a mechanical watch that's already 30 years old compared to having to update the firmware of whatever Internet-of-insecure-and-shitty-Thing gizmo that's going to be a thing of the past in a few years.

And if you really let a nice mechanical watch idle for decades, at least someone can do this:

"Restoring a Vintage Rolex Submariner with the Original Box, Paperwork... Even the Receipt!"

https://youtu.be/WsImSuG-dLY

While I'm really not sure there are going to be people out there keeping a connected wristwatch from 2026 going in the year 2066 (not sure about the value of that either).

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#92

Post by nevster » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 1:18 AM UTC

eykanal wrote: post #4

There's a great essay hiding in that page, but oh my goodness that is a frustrating format and layout.

I hate that fade-in stuff. Basically just close any page that does it.

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#93

Post by compounding_it » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 1:30 AM UTC

ggreer wrote: post #65

strict9 wrote: post #18

This is an interesting and more apt way to frame smart features. One way I've found to avoid objects that come alive is to buy the commercial version. - TVs aimed at commercial hospitality businesses let you avoid a lot of the bloatware and smart features that come bundled with it - Commercial washer/dryers let you avoid bluetooth and wifi and other junk not needed to wash your clothes. These are available without th…

It can also make sense to buy old/used versions of consumer products. For example: My parents have a washer & dryer from the mid 90s. They occasionally get a new belt, but besides that there's not much that can go wrong with them. If you're looking at buying used stuff, it's important to research common failures for that specific product and what can be done to fix them. As long as it's popular enough that parts stil…

Newer stuff is more efficient. For example washers and dryers have a direct drive technology with gears that help it use less power and maybe even less water.

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#94

Post by jp57 » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 1:39 AM UTC

IDK. The neediest possession I own is my sailboat. It is never finished. And it’s incredibly low tech. The highest tech part of it, the gps chart plotter, is not internet connected and it more or less works like that guy’s old watch. Meanwhile, the physical boat is desperately needy. An infinite to-do list. Other sailors i talk to say this is pretty normal.

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#95

Post by ggreer » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 1:49 AM UTC

compounding_it wrote: post #93

ggreer wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It can also make sense to buy old/used versions of consumer products. For example: My parents have a washer & dryer from the mid 90s. They occasionally get a new belt, but besides that there's not much that can go wrong with them. If you're looking at buying used stuff, it's important to research common failures for that specific product and what can be done to fix them. As long as it's popular enough that parts stil…

Newer stuff is more efficient. For example washers and dryers have a direct drive technology with gears that help it use less power and maybe even less water.

I don't think efficiency matters at all for washers, as they are a rounding error in terms of water usage. Most water is for agriculture, not domestic consumption.[1] The main issues for appliances are reliability and ease of repair. Newer machines have more electronics and software, making them worse in both respects.

1. https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/05/11/california-water-you-d...

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#96

Post by erelong » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 1:54 AM UTC

I liked the distinction between "done" and ["ongoing"] with devices, although the end of the article pivots away from minimalism which for me kind of is the solution some people are looking for

We're basically looking to replace the infinite scroll with a finite scroll or at least milestones on the scroll

Also for some things, I wonder if the solution is giant batteries or whatever equivalent might exist - from a phone that needs to be charged every day to a block that needs to be charged weekly (!) (or at a longer time interval?!) - I feel like this could make thinsg feel "done longer" anyway...

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#97

Post by badc0ffee » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 2:05 AM UTC

jbaber wrote: post #83

badc0ffee wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Turn off every notification that isn’t actionable or joyful to you. I have notifications on for Uber Eats because I want updates when I order a food delivery. Of course, the app takes this opportunity to randomly (though infrequently) send me ad notifications during the other 98% of the time. Just this past week I've seen notifications for getting my Easter shopping done, and something for "National Burrito Day" wh…

[Buzzkill] for android lets you completely control if you get specific notifications at all or with sound etc. I bunch up noisy text threads in once-a-day chunks, silence all notifications not about/from nuclear family from sleep to wake, etc. It really made me appreciate that, when I have to have my phone, notifications are like an extra obnoxious form of e-mail with all of its problems. [Buzzkill] gives me the phon…

The filtering looks fairly powerful, but I wonder if I could have it hide notifications from apps that I haven't interacted with in 24 hours. I would do that for ALL of the delivery and transportation apps.

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#98

Post by greedo » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 2:45 AM UTC

Fwirt wrote: post #71

I realize the purpose of the essay, and I agree with the author's sentiment that our possessions ask more of us than is necessary, and more than ever before. But I disagree that any object is finished . That Casio that the author mentions, yes it goes 7 years without a battery change, but the day the battery dies will be the day that you have to buy a new battery, figure out how to open it, and change it. Or (as many…

My dad once told me that just because he had a phone (landline), that he was under no obligation to answer it. I thought it was funny at the time but I wish he was still around for me to tell him he was right.

When iPhones became common, my ex-wife would get upset when I wouldn't reply to a text message. Sometimes I was busy and missed the notification, or couldn't answer (like in a meeting, driving, etc). Or I knew that the message would be better answered in person.

The social expectations part is hard to overcome. Societal contracts, whether implicit or explicit are very hard to ignore.

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#99

Post by greedo » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 2:51 AM UTC

pimlottc wrote: post #80

Fwirt wrote: post #71

I realize the purpose of the essay, and I agree with the author's sentiment that our possessions ask more of us than is necessary, and more than ever before. But I disagree that any object is finished . That Casio that the author mentions, yes it goes 7 years without a battery change, but the day the battery dies will be the day that you have to buy a new battery, figure out how to open it, and change it. Or (as many…

I agree, I think the idea of products being done is a temporary illusion. Older analog technology needed a lot more maintenance over time. I doubt someone in the 1970s would agree with this; most things then needed to be regularly mended, fixed, tuned, serviced, repaired, refilled, what have you. It’s only in the last few decades that materials and manufacturing have gotten good enough that you can expect gadgets to…

I don't agree. Older tech was simpler, and often more reliable. They didn't depend on being able to connect to a networked time clock for sync, didn't need networking period. Today's systems are inherently fragile.

I grew up in the 70's. About the only thing I would say is less fragile are cars. Today's cars are just better in so many ways but are unmaintainable by the average user.

And people throw out things instead of repairing them because they don't know how. But that's changing as self-repair movements have taught millions. For example, the Kitchen Aid mixer. The original, built by Hobart and acquired by KitchenAid was a tank. However it had a sacrificial gear and people said that was a flaw because they didn't understand the purpose of sheer pins or sacrificial gears. Now it's pretty well understood thanks to YouTubers like Mr. Mixer that repairing these is easy peezy.

Re: The Last Quiet Thing

#100

Post by greedo » Tue, Apr 07, 2026, 2:55 AM UTC

TacticalCoder wrote: post #91

Fwirt wrote: post #71

I realize the purpose of the essay, and I agree with the author's sentiment that our possessions ask more of us than is necessary, and more than ever before. But I disagree that any object is finished . That Casio that the author mentions, yes it goes 7 years without a battery change, but the day the battery dies will be the day that you have to buy a new battery, figure out how to open it, and change it. Or (as many…

Common... I've got tools I "inherited" from my grandpa that are still fine (brothers and I basically inherited the house and the tools where in the shed and whenever I go there on vacation, I use those tools to fix the house). I've got a screwdriver which I definitely remember using as a teenager, in the late 80s (and which I used for a variety of DIY jobs ever since) to assemble the trucks on my skateboards. And tha…

When The Force Awakens, I spent $99 on a toy version of BB8 that you could control from your iPhone. It was a cool toy. Then after a while the app was no longer supported... Sad times.

I also owned every iPhone from the first through iPhone 7 and kept each as I replaced the old one. After a while, none were usable due to changes in cellphone tech. And I realized keeping LiO batteries around was a huge fire hazard...