Tuesday, November 24, 2020
Good entertainment = good maintenance
In previous item,
The real engineers and architects of the first 1000 were not in Github mode. They built houses and cathedrals to last, because they understood technology was not going to improve soon. The scribes put artistry into their handwritten books, knowing that the books would be used and maintained for centuries. They tried to provide beauty and pleasure for the maintainers, to insure better and longer maintenance. Bookkeepers used indelible ink on heavy paper, and 'illuminated' their ledgers with similar artistry.Providing beauty and treats for the maintainers is a lost art, but not lost for 1000 years. The practice was fairly common up to 1970 when the whole world of manufacturing and maintenance was hunted to extinction by Wall Street. Some car makers tried to create a pleasant environment for mechanics. I experienced this sort of pleasure when working on Mercedes and Toyota in the '70s. When you got into the engine compartment, everything you needed for routine maintenance was easy to find, pleasant for the eyes and hands, and satisfying to complete. I never had this experience in a VW or American car. RCA and Zenith unquestionably followed this rule with their radios in the '20s and '30s. Both brands were beautiful and entertaining outside and inside. The inside included all the info you needed, and often included specialized tools or spare parts. I try to provide moments of pleasure and beauty in my courseware and graphics. A textbook, whether on paper or software, should include some art and entertainment. I don't know if anyone appreciates them, but I feel obligated to pay back the beauty of life and nature. Later and better thought: Providing beauty and treats for the maintainers is NOT a lost art outside of human "civilization". Plants have been doing it for a billion years. Flowers and fruits are EXACTLY beauty and treats to insure maintenance.
Labels: Entertainment, Equipoise, Patient things, Smarty-plants
¶ 1:58 PM
