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Old 11-19-2008, 06:33 PM   #1 (permalink)
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Location: Nofe Curolina
Appliances you HATE?

There has to be SOMETHING around the house that you use, but just can't stand.

For me, it's this God-forsaken GE dishwasher. Not only is it completely incapable of actually getting the dishes clean, but the racks are so poorly designed that nothing fits in the damn thing. But by FAR, the worst characteristic is the noise.

I know dishwasher's aren't the quietest contraptions in the world, but sitting 15 feet away in my living room is roughly the equivalent to the cleaning cycle of a drive-through automated car wash.

A close second would be my ice maker. It happens to lack the ability of being turned off. All day, every day, making and dumping ice into the ever growing glacier in the middle of my freezer.


So, what's the biggest POS you've got floating around your homestead?
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Old 11-19-2008, 06:54 PM   #2 (permalink)
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Location: Louisville, KY
I despise my washing machine. Half the time it doesn't drain properly, so I have to re-run the Drain and Spin cycle. Fun days are when I'm not paying attention and reach my hand in there, only to get soaked. The POS is only two and a half years old. I probably wouldn't be quite so pissy about it if my washer and dryer weren't in the basement of my building. I'm on the second floor, so running up and down the stairs to do my laundry puts me in a foul mood even before I have to deal with machine malfunctions.

Meanwhile, in the Fair house, the dishwasher is...well, me.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:01 PM   #3 (permalink)
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My refer sucks. Not long after I moved in it caught fire. A little troubleshooting and 16G wire and that no longer happens but it still sucks. Some of the problem is the humidity here. But a lot is it needs a new thermostat which I can't find down here.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:05 PM   #4 (permalink)
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Location: Vancouver, Washington
Navi..... Not in my house but in our new car.

Get a damn map. I swear it is becoming a lost art to read a map.

It just makes me mad that people need Google Maps to find anything anymore.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:06 PM   #5 (permalink)
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I intend to someday send my vacuum cleaner to hell...fuckin' thing.
Its heavy as sin, smells bad when in use (don't suggest anything, I've done it all), nips my heels and ankles because the "wheels" stick, forcing me to drag it, and overheats! Fucking piece of shit.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:11 PM   #6 (permalink)
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Location: Cottage Grove, Wisconsin
Vacuum cleaners. All of them.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:13 PM   #7 (permalink)
Living in a Warmer Insanity
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Apex Shok View Post
Navi..... Not in my house but in our new car.

Get a damn map. I swear it is becoming a lost art to read a map.

It just makes me mad that people need Google Maps to find anything anymore.
I saw a report one day where people were driving into rivers and buildings etc... All based on what their Nav systems were telling them. Such as "Turn left now." So they turn left and end up in someone's living room.

In some ways technology is making people less intelligent by the day, IMHO.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:25 PM   #8 (permalink)
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Location: Upper Michigan
Vacuum Cleaner - though I've never really thought of it much as an actuall appliance but more like a tool, like a power drill/screwdriver...

Mine has a problem with the switch in the handle. The sliding of the switch over the metal connectors underneath has worn them down making the connection a little iffy. Apparantly this has been a problem with this model because the company has stopped producing replacement switches and is only selling the WHOLE handle. The switch used to be about $8 or $8 bucks but the handle is at least $30. Rippoff. The warranty of course ran out last year. Sucks. I either have to bear with the sporadic on and off while I vacuum until it completely wears out, or get a new handle for another year or two (since the warranty on that is probably even shorter). OR foot the bill for a brand new vacuum. As much as I hate the prices on those Kirby Vacuums, I seem to recall a lifetime warrenty on it. If I could find the find print to be reasonable enough I would be willing to buy one of those so long as I had the money at the time.

For now - I'm living with it and bitching about it.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:45 PM   #9 (permalink)
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Location: Sydney, Australia
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bear Cub View Post
For me, it's this God-forsaken GE dishwasher. Not only is it completely incapable of actually getting the dishes clean, but the racks are so poorly designed that nothing fits in the damn thing. But by FAR, the worst characteristic is the noise.

I know dishwasher's aren't the quietest contraptions in the world, but sitting 15 feet away in my living room is roughly the equivalent to the cleaning cycle of a drive-through automated car wash.
I've got one word for you - Miele. Man, our dishwasher is quiet All dishwashers are not the same. I don't think I dislike any of our appliances, so I'm not sure why I'm here.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:53 PM   #10 (permalink)
... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.
 
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I'm frustrated with dryers. The things eat so much electricity it's crazy, even with "energy star". I'm thinking about line-drying my clothes. There's got to be a more efficient method of drying clothes that doesn't involve hanging them up for hours until they're stiff and dry.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:58 PM   #11 (permalink)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Willravel View Post
I'm frustrated with dryers. The things eat so much electricity it's crazy, even with "energy star". I'm thinking about line-drying my clothes. There's got to be a more efficient method of drying clothes that doesn't involve hanging them up for hours until they're stiff and dry.
I get Costco brand fabric softener and it seems to help. So does shaking them well at the line and folding them.

Someday I'm going to make someone a fine wife.
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Old 11-19-2008, 07:59 PM   #12 (permalink)
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Location: US
Quote:
Originally Posted by Willravel View Post
I'm thinking about line-drying my clothes.
Ok mom. LOL

I hate the vacuum.
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Old 11-19-2008, 08:02 PM   #13 (permalink)
... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tully Mars View Post
I get Costco brand fabric softener and it seems to help. So does shaking them well at the line and folding them.

Someday I'm going to make someone a fine wife.
Made of Honor 2: Let's Get This Party Started

I tried line drying a few years ago, and clothes do last longer that way, but even with shaking they seem stiff. Maybe that's the price of being green: stiff socks.
-----Added 19/11/2008 at 11 : 03 : 50-----
Quote:
Originally Posted by luciferase75 View Post
Ok mom. LOL
I figure the muscles cancel that out, but I could be wrong. I'll leave these questions to historians and philosophers.

Last edited by Willravel; 11-19-2008 at 08:03 PM.. Reason: Automerged Doublepost
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Old 11-19-2008, 08:04 PM   #14 (permalink)
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Location: earth
Quote:
Originally Posted by Willravel View Post
I'm frustrated with dryers. The things eat so much electricity it's crazy, even with "energy star". I'm thinking about line-drying my clothes. There's got to be a more efficient method of drying clothes that doesn't involve hanging them up for hours until they're stiff and dry.
I do both, hang on the line until stiff and dry and then fluff in the dryer for a couple of minutes.


I love the smell of line dried clothes, very fresh...except when the farmers spread the fields with fresh pig shi....
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Old 11-19-2008, 08:08 PM   #15 (permalink)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by canuckguy View Post
I do both, hang on the line until stiff and dry and then fluff in the dryer for a couple of minutes.


I love the smell of line dried clothes, very fresh...except when the farmers spread the fields with fresh pig shi....
I do the opposite-run them thru the dryer for 10 minutes then hang. They don't have any wrinkles and aren't board-stiff.

Oops...
The appliance I hate-my vaccuum cleaner. When it was time to buy one, I read three consumer books and they all picked this model. They were all lying sacks of shit.
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Old 11-19-2008, 08:35 PM   #16 (permalink)
who ever said streaking was a bad thing?
 
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The Magic Bullet. The thing does not puree anything. Seriously, pesto is a challenge, or a fruit smoothie. I just want to chop something!!!
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Old 11-19-2008, 09:18 PM   #17 (permalink)
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Location: Some nucking fut house.
Are sex toys appliances? Because my wife has one that broke after one or two uses. Receipt or not that is just something that she didn't want to return.
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Old 11-19-2008, 09:29 PM   #18 (permalink)
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My dishwasher is such a POS. I use it as a large drying rack now. I am in a rented apartment so I don't have much say over it.

I had a Magic Bullet because it was Buy One, Get One and my sister wanted one so I got the extra. It was pretty worthless. I gave it away after using it once to crush some ice.
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Old 11-19-2008, 09:39 PM   #19 (permalink)
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Location: Oregon
I hate my refrigerator. It's old, inefficient, and tiny. With 4 people in the house, we've had to switch to buying some groceries communally to save on fridge space. We can't have our own individual blocks of Tillamook cheese if we're going to have room for all the beer.

I also dislike the dishwasher intensely. It's as old as the fridge. I think they were purchased at the same time--they're both from the 70s and they're both Kenmore. We have to use the pots and pans setting if the dishes are actually going to get clean, especially on the top rack. I miss our old dishwasher--it was a brand-new Frigidaire that worked like a charm, even on the energy saver setting. It also had a separate top rack only function. I'm also jealous of my parents' Bosch. The thing is so quiet you can't tell when it's running.
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Old 11-19-2008, 09:40 PM   #20 (permalink)
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All my appliances stink. Washing machine, dryer, dish washer, and even the hot water heater. My best clothes dryer was purchased well used for $50 and lasted at least 10 years. I have bought new lately and can't even get one to last 6 years without repairs. However I can't include my freezer in the Bad list. Payed about $60, 5 years ago. The thing is so old the coils are built into the shelves on the inside. (guessing about a mid 60's model) It did prove a point. They don't make appliances like they used to.
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Old 11-19-2008, 09:52 PM   #21 (permalink)
Psycho
 
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Location: Anchorage, AK
I would say my overhead oven fan.

I need to make it vent outside. the last people who lived there, just put it up, and all it does is circulate the air. No vent to the outside at all.

I know this is bad in the long run. That is why I am saving up all my money to dump at least $15k in my kitchen.
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Old 11-19-2008, 10:30 PM   #22 (permalink)
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Location: Vancouver, Washington
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tully Mars View Post

In some ways technology is making people less intelligent by the day, IMHO.
oh god yes,

This is some random quote I pulled from a NY times article about the rise of PDA's in the late 90's.

"The popular notion has it that we use only 10 percent of our brain power,
when in truth it seems to take 110 percent just to muddle through the day.
So we supplement our minds with machines,
then agonize over whether they are telling us the truth."

Who makes the machines?
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Old 11-20-2008, 01:07 AM   #23 (permalink)
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The remote control ... to my car stereo. That's right, my car stereo has a remote control. It adjusts the volume as well as changes which song is playing on the cd. Hubby bought it for my car as a surprise.

WTF?! This has to be a 'guy' thing, right?
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:06 AM   #24 (permalink)
Yarp.
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tully Mars View Post
I saw a report one day where people were driving into rivers and buildings etc... All based on what their Nav systems were telling them. Such as "Turn left now." So they turn left and end up in someone's living room.

In some ways technology is making people less intelligent by the day, IMHO.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roachboy View Post
it's better if you can ride without having to wonder if the guy in the car behind you is a sociopath, i find.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:13 AM   #25 (permalink)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Apex Shok View Post
oh god yes,

This is some random quote I pulled from a NY times article about the rise of PDA's in the late 90's.

"The popular notion has it that we use only 10 percent of our brain power,
when in truth it seems to take 110 percent just to muddle through the day.
So we supplement our minds with machines,
then agonize over whether they are telling us the truth."

Who makes the machines?
Skynet.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:23 AM   #26 (permalink)
Yarp.
 
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I hate our dishwasher and our washing machine. The dishwasher, which came with the house, is always clogging up with water and there are portions of the bottom rack that are rusting; we're very much due for a new one.

Thanks to space constraints in our house, we were stuck with purchasing a stackable washer and dryer (two separate front-load units, not the single unit with a dryer on top of a top-loading washer). We didn't know the washing machine in the set being offered in our price range at Sears had no filter in front of the drain pump. We're typically about 85% vigilant with emptying our pockets before the clothes go in the washer. As luck would have it, we've had to replace the drain pump twice after coins got left behind in our pockets a handful of times.

Yes, we're more careful now, but both of us had gone our whole lives laundering clothes with stuff left in pockets before and never had this problem until now.
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If one million people replaced a two mile car trip once a week with a bike ride, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 50,000 tons per year. If one out of ten car commuters switched to a bike, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 25.4 million tons per year. [2milechallenge.com]

Quote:
Originally Posted by roachboy View Post
it's better if you can ride without having to wonder if the guy in the car behind you is a sociopath, i find.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:30 AM   #27 (permalink)
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Location: Westminster, CO
The first apartment I ever lived in, I tried the dishwasher out once, and forget it. Water leaked everywhere. Washer and dryer was in the basement (where I slipped on ice because to go downstairs requires walking down a RAMP), cracked my head, and got a small concussion).

Next apartment I lived in, didn't even HAVE a dishwasher. Washer and dryer was on the first floor in the ex's mother's home (not that I minded, but good lord, they piled their clothes up SO MUCH you couldn't even GET to the washer and dryer.

Finally, the place I'm at now has a good fridge, good ice maker, good microwave you could fit a turkey in, and a good washer and dryer. I've finally found peace in the appliance world.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:43 AM   #28 (permalink)
Soaring
 
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Location: Ohio!
Our stackable washer and dryer set tends to be a pain in the ass for me since our laundry room is small - no folding space.

The dishwasher is okay, fridge is fine, microwave is alright.. the oven makes the stovetop REALLY hot which sucks if you're cooking half-naked and brush against it. The fan in the stove hood doesn't work at all.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:52 AM   #29 (permalink)
 
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i hate microwaves.
all of them.

i have a deeply conflictual relation to my television too, but that's another matter.
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Old 11-20-2008, 10:43 AM   #30 (permalink)
Insane
 
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Location: Ottawa
Yeah, my microwave is crap. Its way too small, and weak. Hmmm...
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Old 11-20-2008, 11:37 AM   #31 (permalink)
Riding the Ocean Spray
 
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Location: S.E. PA in U Sofa
My most agregious HATE goes toward my cordless handheld vacuum cleaner. I wish I could say it totally sucks, but it just don't suck anywhere near strong enough for long enough. In fact, every one I've ever owned totally blows. Somebody needs to build one with a battery that can run one of these at full power for at least a few minutes and has great suction.

We got new LG brand washer and dryer recently. I am so impressed with these machines! They look great and work even better. The washer is so smooth and quiet you can hardly hear it even standing next to it; it uses only a fraction of the water our old Maytag used and it's still very effective at washing dirt out, plus it spins the clothes so thoroughly that sometimes I'm tempted to not even use the dryer, except the dryer is so cool I throw the clothes in there anyway just so I can work the controls and hear the great little dingy bell sound when it's finished, plus all the cool lights in the controls almost give me flashbacks. All appliances should work this well.
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Old 11-20-2008, 11:58 AM   #32 (permalink)
lightform
 
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Location: Edge of the deep green sea
The oven in this apartment is horrible. I has broken twice since we moved in about 5 months ago. I'm guessing from the color avocado green, that it is from the 70's. You can barely read the dials, so you have a hard time figuring out what temperature it's on.

The most frustrating appliance I have ever used was an old refrigerator. The freezer would build up frost so fast there would be a hole, about the size of your hand, left in a few weeks. Then my roommate broke it by trying to chip away frost with a large knife and hammer. The freon leaked out and everything in the fridge went bad. Then he swears he didn't cause the refrigerator to break.
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Old 11-20-2008, 12:57 PM   #33 (permalink)
Twisted
 
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Location: UK
I don't have a TV, dishwasher, tumbledryer, or microwave... it's just me and my SO living here so none of them are necessary. But the vacuum cleaner.. GRRRRR... fucking hate it!!
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Old 11-20-2008, 02:52 PM   #34 (permalink)
Upright
 
Do computers count as appliances?

Sometimes I'd happily take a big hammer to mine and I'm good with computers.
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Old 11-20-2008, 02:59 PM   #35 (permalink)
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Location: Angloland
our washing machine gets grumpy and won't let you open the door or start a cycle for hours on end, then finally gives in and takes forever to do anything (and does a bad job even then).
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Old 11-20-2008, 04:08 PM   #36 (permalink)
Upright
 
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Location: anywhere but here.
I hate my damn fridge. It is an ancient RCA (did't evn know RCA made fridges). It is so damn small inside that I can't put large bottles standing upright, the door shelves are flimsy and broken, it sucks electricity and it makes odd clicking noises. Now I know why the previous residents left it behind.
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Old 11-20-2008, 07:48 PM   #37 (permalink)
I have eaten the slaw
 
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My lawnmower. It would work perfectly if Sears made the right replacement parts for it. The primer bulb won't stay seated, so I have to continually pound it back in with a hammer and screwdrivers, or it won't start. Sears stopped making the grasscatcher style that it came with, and the new one I had to get is way too small and falls off at the slightest bump, which leads to a lot of starting and stopping. The lever to the kill switch has broken, and Sears no longer sells that part, so I have to wedge a block of wood under the switch to keep it from shutting off. This, of course, makes it unsafe to operate. I hate Sears. The time has long since come for this horrible shell of a company to die and let something competent take its place. I hope their next board meeting is interrupted by a pack of rabid wolves who assrape the corporate officers, and my hatred for them burns like the fire of a thousand suns.

Other than that, I have no complaints.
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Old 11-20-2008, 10:07 PM   #38 (permalink)
Upright
 
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If computers count..then I have two printers connected to mine. But somehow the printers seems to have a constant fight, inside my PC, for supremacy. The little one I use the most, seems to loose and needs constant help by reinstalling .... AARGH.
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Old 11-21-2008, 11:22 AM   #39 (permalink)
Living in a Warmer Insanity
 
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Super Moderator
Location: Yucatan, Mexico
Quote:
Originally Posted by spinelust View Post
Yeah it's funny when it's on TV, I guess. In real life I can't decide if it sad, scary or both.

Quote:
On Thursday night, near the town of Glubczyce in Poland, a man drove his minivan into a lake.

This was not deliberate. Nor was it a brazen stunt. The man was simply trying to get from Point A to Point B. But instead of relying upon his eyes, the man placed absolute faith in the disembodied voice emanating from his dashboard navigation system.

"The man took a road that was closed a year ago when the area was flooded to make an artificial lake serving as a water reservoir," a very thorough police spokesperson told Agence France-Presse.

"He ignored three road signs warning of a dead end. His GPS told him to drive straight ahead and he did."

The man was travelling with two passengers. One can only imagine the conversation that unfolded just before the minivan plunged into the water.

Passenger 1: "Are we going the right way?"

Driver: "Yes, the GPS says keep going straight. Don't worry."

Passenger 2: "Okay. But why are we passing signs that say Danger! and Road Closed and Do Not Enter? Shouldn't we stop and ask for directions?"

Driver: "Directions? Don't be ridiculous! We have GPS!"

Passenger 1: "Yeah, but isn't that–"

Everyone: "OH MY GOD, THAT'S AN ARTIFICIAL LAKE!"

When rescuers arrived, the three were clinging to the roof of the minivan, which was nearly submerged. No word if the GPS was still gurgling directions: "Climb Out Window Now. Swim To Safety In Two Seconds. Trudge Left Onto Dry Land In Three Metres. You Have Not Arrived."

Sadly, this is not the first time a motorist has been led astray by satellite technology.

There have been stories about drivers being directed into forests and canyons and other places where cars are generally not recommended to go. There have been stories about transport trucks getting stuck under bridges or at the bottom of dirt hills.

Thanks to faulty GPS guidance, drivers have ended up at the wrong restaurant, the wrong courthouse, the wrong museum, the wrong just about anything.

Most of these mishaps are irritating. But recent incidents are starting to sound downright dangerous.

Last month in New York, a driver dutifully followed the instructions of his GPS. When told to turn right, he did. Minutes later, he scrambled to safety just before an oncoming commuter train slammed into his car. (The exact same thing happened to a different driver at the exact same location in January.)

Then there was the woman in England who drove her Mercedes into a river. The guy in New Mexico who nearly drove off a cliff.

Or the man in Texas who was nearly killed when sent the wrong way onto a busy one-way street.

He has since given his GPS unit a name – "Christine," for the psychopathic 1958 Plymouth in a Stephen King book. He told the Wall Street Journal: "She is trying to kill me."

Earlier this year, Britain's Mirror reported that 300,000 motorists have crashed or nearly crashed as a result of GPS. And 1.5 million drivers have "suddenly veered dangerously or illegally in busy traffic while following its directions."

A psychology professor told the paper: "When you see pictures of a lorry being lifted out of a ditch with a crane, it's difficult to understand why drivers follow a (GPS) even when it's clearly wrong.

"But some people are easily persuadable and will follow instructions, whether it's their wife or a computer telling them where to go."

Well, that settles it. I was going to buy a GPS module. But for now, I'll listen to the voice inside my head.
TheStar.com | Columnist | Scary when GPS voice has it wrong
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Old 11-21-2008, 11:38 AM   #40 (permalink)
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Location: Amsterdam, NL
raeanna74, there is another option for your VC.
Short out the switch so that when you plug the VC "in" the power is on.
Unplug it to turn it off.
Many people are able to do this simple wiring job for you if you can't.
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