Re: Why Torx
Message #15 Posted by Michael Meyer, M.D. on 16 Nov 2001, 11:13 a.m.,
in response to message #14 by Joe Panico
Joe,
I couldn't agree more! In fact, I think our discussion goes directly, now, to the heart of another current thread: the death of HP calcs and quality product development.
Even when I was a starving college student, literally living in basement apartments (once in a condemned building), working 3 jobs to put myself through school at Northwestern, and existing on peanut butter and jelly and Ramen noodles, I refused to buy a cheap tool. I'd rather save for weeks and get a quality tool than one that would fail, costing more time, effort, and money in the long run.
I bought HP because of its quality, and to this day, I would rather spend more on a quality product. I don't think I'm completely alone in this, but apparently in the consumer minority. (Remember when quality cars gave way to cars like the Pinto, Chevette, and other "disposable" crap cars...) I was so disappointed when I bought an HP-720 series printer and the software never worked right and there were posts left and right about it, but HP kept denying any problems, and selling them like crazy.
I write with a Mont Blanc fountain pen because it's elegant, reliable, well designed, and actually saves me money many times over a pile of cheap pens. Other examples are endless. There is still a population of enlightened consumers that will pay more for quality products. I would rather spend the big bucks on a Windows upgrade that is SMALLER, has LESS bells and whistles, but has an efficient code that will run fast and well on my existing computer, instead of continuous upgrades that require endless expense of time and effort and hardware. But, I guess that's not how it's done in this quick-profit environment.
By the way, to relate this to my own profession: The World Health Organization reports that the top two causes of disability in the WORLD are now psychiatric; depression and anxiety disorders. YET, mental health care has been cut from 12% of the U.S. health care dollar to 3% in the last ten years. College graduate level therapists are reimbursed at almost the same rate as physicians, who've had three to six times the years of schooling. Nobody is going into training, and the medical schools can no longer draw top college graduates. Insurance companies make record profits... The solution? Faster and cheaper! More profit, less quality. Give lesser trained people the same job! Psychologists (who have not even attended medical school) will soon succeed in gaining the right to prescribe medications (after attending a couple of weekend seminars), as have optometrists, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. I think in a few years, all you'll need to be a physician is a grade school biology class. Even the physicians in training, now, are limited in the number of hours they work... can't make it too hard, now!
HP is just following the rest of the world. Isn't it sad that people sometimes have to actually omit their educational history to even get some jobs these days (or they're over-qualified!!)
Sad. Now I know why I still love to use and collect HP calculators. Now I understand my love for these old products.
Someday, in the not too distant future, more people will ask, "What happened?! Why are there no resources available to treat my suicidal kid (wife, sibling, etc.) I thought you were just complaining, doctor!" There used to be six psychiatric hospitals here in Omaha. Now there are two, and they're always full. There's no substance abuse treatment available other than community houses (non-medical).
Anyway. I think there's a direct connection here. I still have all the quality tools I bought in college 25 years ago. But, I'm sounding like an old fart, now.
Michael
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