Could It Have Been The Same Guy?

[Jim Koepke]

Something came to me just now while hanging up my laundry. One of the shirts was one recently bought for me by my wife. When wearing it a few days ago it bothered me most of the day because of a label made of some scratchy material was very irritating on the back of my neck. So a little time was spent with some tweezers and a small pair of scissors to remove the offending labels. All three of them on one shirt!

While doing this, my thoughts turned to wondering if the people who designed and made these shirts ever wore them. Did this scratchy, stiff material not bother them?

Then my mind drifted on to other design fubars... What about the DVD cases with what looks like a rounded cutout to slide one's finger under the DVD to remove it. The only problem is there is a wall of plastic keeping one's finger from being able to slide under the disk.

Could it be the guy who gave us scratchy shirt labels turned their lack of design talents to the home entertainment industry?

Some other DVD cases let one slide their finger under the disk, but the ring in the center seems to have a death grip on the disk.

There have been some bad design flaws in my time. Think Edsel or Corvair. Some of them seem to keep on going forever like the Energizer Bunny.

Anyone else have pet peeves toward "what were they thinking" product shortfalls?

jtk

[John K Jordan]

...wondering if the people who designed and made these shirts ever wore them.

I suspect the people who design automated phone systems have never had to call, neither have the management who had the systems installed. I've asked.

[Kev Williams]

without naming names- those things you put eggs in to boil them. Anyone who's used them knows what I'm taking about...

[Edwin Santos]

without naming names- those things you put eggs in to boil them. Anyone who's used them knows what I'm taking about...

?
You have a gripe against saucepans?

Couldn't be. You must be talking about some other kitchen gadget I am having trouble guessing.

[Jim Becker]

I suspect the people who design automated phone systems have never had to call, neither have the management who had the systems installed. I've asked.

Trust me...it's the latter, not the former. (I was in the biz...) The end clients control the budget and quite often it's not enough for the application developers (the folks who design the trees, etc.) to cover all the bases and make it human friendly. The end clients also balk at paying for some of the great new AI capabilities that automatically fine tune things based on calling patterns. It would be embarrassing to say just how many clients were not willing to properly fund the project such that their customers would actually benefit from ease of use with the automated response system.

Jim, on the shirts thing, I rarely buy shirts anymore that have actual physical labels sewn in, but if they do, as soon as I am assured I'm keeping them, the old seam ripper comes out and those labels go "bye-bye". I also hate the feel of them! Most of my shirts are from Duluth Trading and they went to directly printing on the fabric some time ago for pretty much everything.

[Jim Koepke]

Most of my shirts are from Duluth Trading and they went to directly printing on the fabric some time ago for pretty much everything.

My gosh, a retailer that considers the customer in their product.

Who'd have thunk it?

jtk

[Doug Garson]

without naming names- those things you put eggs in to boil them. Anyone who's used them knows what I'm taking about...

I've used those, in fact I had a couple of hard boiled eggs for lunch today, they work as advertised which is a rare commodity these days, what's your complaint?

[Lee Schierer]

One of the shirts was one recently bought for me by my wife. When wearing it a few days ago it bothered me most of the day because of a label made of some scratchy material was very irritating on the back of my neck.
jtk

It's not the material, it is the laser or hot knife cut edges cause the irritation. I also have removed labels from shirts for the same reason. Now if you could just find the end of that monofilament thread that they stitched the sleeves onto the shirt body that always seems to poke you on the back of your shoulder where it is hard to reach....

[Doug Garson]

My gosh, a retailer that considers the customer in their product.

Who'd have thunk it?

jtk

Or they found printed labels cheaper than sewn on labels?

[Bill Dufour]

I am trying to find replacement kitchen door pulls. Simple two screws with a bent fixed bail. Chrome plated from the 1950's or earlier. All the ones I can find are child sized. I can not put my fingers in the loop. I can put my pinky and ring finger in put no bigger fingers. The open space is about 50% smaller then the older design.
My other kitchen problem is the sink strainer. Simple design from 1920, patent long expired, Know they make it two piece and the rubber flange does not stay in place so it can seal or be flush while open without adjustment. Some even use a spring to pull it down in case gravity and water pressure fail at then same time.
At least sears is gone so I can no longer complain about their garden hoses that have too short of a hex on the male end to hand tighten.
Bill D

[Kev Williams]

I've used those, in fact I had a couple of hard boiled eggs for lunch today, they work as advertised which is a rare commodity these days, what's your complaint?

so share the secret to making the eggs not stick to the things like construction adhesive-? Tried about 3 brands of spray, corn oil, vegetable oil, safflower oil, olive oil- cleaning the things out is more work than peeling shells...

[Eric Danstrom]

I bet that "same guy" was the kid that ran across your freshly mowed lawn you could never catch. He's grown up and haunting you!

[Brady Watson]

Gas cans.

I spilled more fuel in the past year than the rest of my entire life. I'm going back to old school 5 gallon non-Jerry metal ones.

Few things more than cleaning up spilled diesel in the bed if your new truck in the dead of winter. The breathers leak and fuel sloshes out of strapped down containers.

HB Eggs:

Bring water to a boil. Add 1/4 cup of vinegar. Gently place eggs into water. Boil gently for 13 minutes. Place eggs in ice water bath. Shells peel right off both brown and white

[John K Jordan]

HB Eggs:
Bring water to a boil. Add 1/4 cup of vinegar. Gently place eggs into water. Boil gently for 13 minutes. Place eggs in ice water bath. Shells peel right off both brown and white

We have had chickens for about 15 years and have boiled a lot of eggs. The thing we discovered about fresh eggs is the shells stick. Eggs you buy in a store are probably not same-day fresh. My Lovely Bride says if she lets fresh eggs sit for a couple of days the shells don't stick. White, brown, and blue/green eggs.

eggs_platter.jpg

She says she boils 10 minutes, then crushes the shell a bit after a couple of minutes in ice water.

I haven't tried the vinegar trick. Makes sense, since vinegar will soften egg shells.

JKJ

[Jim Becker]

Gas cans.

I spilled more fuel in the past year than the rest of my entire life. I'm going back to old school 5 gallon non-Jerry metal ones. e

Yea, I bought a "spout replacement kit" from Amazon for several of my fuel containers to replace the "safe" ones that came with said containers. Not only do I no longer spill anything, the flow is better because the kit comes with a vent and cap for the vent...something missing from the "safe" version.