What's the deal with remote controls!?!?

[XDelusion]

Why is it that when I was growing up in the 80's. All electronics in the house hold could be controlled by the base units themselves, but now a days, if you want to change something you HAVE to have a freaking remote?
I was trying to back up some family videos and put them on DVD, but the stupid VCR insist s upon displaying the play time at the top of the screen, and as fate would have it, my parents lost the remote. So I'll assume Toshiba did this on purpose so that the remote will end up broken or lost, forcing me to buy a new one...

... that is if they still support this disposable piece of crap by the time that time comes.

Scenario B is that they are in bed with the Energizer Bunny, and want to force me to buy more and more and more batteries.


A word to all these companies, SIMPLY put a freaking menu button on your products, not just on the remote control. :/


ANyhow, there is my non-political rant for the day.

[Aliotroph?]

My hope is that TVs all get replaced by Linux boxes with various software and hardware for the purpose. I'd love to see all the TV makers go bankrupt.

[DoomedAce]

I don't see the problem, really.

All electronic stuff has a limited lifespan and old devices just tend to break down more often than new ones. You said the VCR/TV was old (judging from the "disposable piece of crap" part), so even if the remote had not been lost, it might not have functioned very well by now anyway (buttons refusing, bad signal, etc.)

Simply buy a new one (if those remotes are still available) and all your problems will be solved. That's a lot less stressful than getting all worked up over the design of your parents' VCR/TV

[Aliotroph?]

Just buy a whole load of universal remotes.

[primus1236]

I think we have more of those then we have remotes for individual boxes. :P It seems like every time we get a universal remote, it doesn't work with our TV, Cable box, DVD player, etc and we have to send it to the company to have extra instructions programmed into it.

[Aliotroph?]

Ideally universal remotes would be programmable from a computer. That way users could add new codes they get from the net or something similar.

[Doom_Dude]

Originally Posted by Aliotroph?

Ideally universal remotes would be programmable from a computer. That way users could add new codes they get from the net or something similar.

That would be good. When my dad bought his big screen boob tube and surround sound speaker system.... they damned remote for the surround unit was wayyyy different than the one in the efffing manual and I couldn't find it online either. So I was unable to figure out how to get it to work the TV as well, like it should. Meh. Damned remotes.

[PumpkinSmasher]

Every TV/VCR/DVD player we've ever bought has the basic features on the base unit such as power, channel change, fast forward, rewind, and such. I've never seen one that doesn't atleast have that.

[GoldEyes]

Our DVD player doesnt have a "down" or "up" button. You know to select through the DVD menu? Found that out when the remote was lost a little bit ago, Heh.

[Aliotroph?]

Should be a standard for the things methinks. That would be even better than trying to program the codes for different machines.

[Doom_Dude]

Haahaa, I've seen VCR's come with remotes that have 'tracking' but the VCR doesn't. So when the remote died, its was damned hard to find a new remote that had the 'tracking' function. Meh. Nowadays the VCR's have auto-tracking but sometimes it either doesn't work (especially with tapes recored on olde machines) or it doesn't work. VCR's are dieing methinks. I did a MGE news jobby the other week that some big UK distributer is dropping VCR's. Xeh.

[Aliotroph?]

That's right. VCRs are soon to die and I say good riddence! Nothing like witnessing the end of shoddy 80's tech!

Hey, how come you're not on ICQ?

[Big_al]

I wish there was a universal standard for remotes, so you didn't have to have hundreds of the things just to watch a DVD

[doomdiz]

dont get me started on POS remote garbage!!! I have this sattelite reciever box @ home, right? I swear that box doesnt even have an on/off button (or at least one that a normal human being living on planet earth can operate!!) Of cousre our stupid dopey dogs are always chewin up the damn remotes!! One of these days Rosie O'Don-hell is gonna come on TV, and I'll be powerless to stop it. That will be the day when you read about some poor smuck twisting his own neck 360deg while sitting in front of a TV in his Montana Home to avoid daytime TV in your regional newspaper!!!!

F&#* TV PRODUCTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Aliotroph?]

Heh, satellite. I won't even go there.

*hugs laptop*

[Falci]

Originally Posted by DoomedAce

I don't see the problem, really.

All electronic stuff has a limited lifespan and old devices just tend to break down more often than new ones. You said the VCR/TV was old (judging from the "disposable piece of crap" part), so even if the remote had not been lost, it might not have functioned very well by now anyway (buttons refusing, bad signal, etc.)

Simply buy a new one (if those remotes are still available) and all your problems will be solved. That's a lot less stressful than getting all worked up over the design of your parents' VCR/TV

Actually newer things are designed to last less... good old time when you bought something and it would effectively last lots of years before breaking apart. Nowadays most eletronics will be blowing away by thenselves as soon as the guarantee ends...

[Aliotroph?]

Electronics last forever. Mechanical parts fail easily and those are what's not designed to last. They may as well not be anyway. By the time they usually fail there's something newer or better you want anyway. Knowing that, and hoping to encourage it a bit, the companies will just design mechanical parts fairly cheaply because it costs them less. Electronics that don't last generally start smoking during their warranty period.

For a nice example, of all the computer failures I've had in the last 20 years, 99% have been mechanical HDD failures. The only other ones were either caused by human stupidity (ice packs, beer, static...), or by fans (mechanical again) dying and making the CPU roast. I've seen a friend lose a couple computer parts to bad boards but those were clearly defective and died well within the warranty period.

Truth is, electronics last way longer than they used to. When radios and computers were based on vacuum tubes the silly things were burning out all the time. Certain mechanical parts, especially metal ones last a long time, often longer than the electronics they came with.

When people talk about all the old things that never broke I have a feeling they're referring to simpler things. Simple things are either so cheap we don't care that they break or they last quite well in most cases. For example, if you buy a shovel or a knife it will probably last a good number of years. If you guy a plastic pencil sharpener it will break. Fortunately the best pencil sharpeners, which are metal, only cost 0.75.

[Falci]

Youe post reminds me of something Aliotroph?. I just don't remember what at this time... When I do... I shall let you know! :P

[FATAL]

Originally Posted by Aliotroph?

When people talk about all the old things that never broke I have a feeling they're referring to simpler things. Simple things are either so cheap we don't care that they break or they last quite well in most cases. For example, if you buy a shovel or a knife it will probably last a good number of years. If you guy a plastic pencil sharpener it will break. Fortunately the best pencil sharpeners, which are metal, only cost 0.75.

Not really, we have a 20 year old washing machine, and it's still working very well.
Our microwave is also about 20 years old, and it still works better than many of the new ones.

More from Fatal's antique coming up, in case the crowd wants it.

Note: My father's computer's oldest files are almost 20 years old, and even so it's working

[DoomedAce]

I think luck plays a major part in how long electronic devices work. And how carefully you use them.

I bought a TV for in my room several years ago and never had a problem with it. A friend bought the exact same TV not much later and it blew up after a good month.