Back in January, a day before a big winter freeze was about to hit Tulsa and dump a foot of snow on us, our home’s furnace stopped working. I didn’t want to spend a week without heat, so I called an HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) company. The technician who…
The denim brand is launching a high school curriculum to teach students how to stitch up tears and replace buttons.
https://player.vimeo.com/video/1117858411 Traditional inkjet printers have become increasingly frustrating for anyone who values flexibility, repairability, or creative experimentation. Locked-down firmware prevents modifications, expensive proprietary cartridges drain budgets…
Undersea internet cables are critical in today’s hyperconnected world. The crew of the Léon Thévenin maintains one stretch of this global network.
Modern appliances pack in more features and efficiency than ever — but you might need to accept that they won’t last as long as Grandma’s old fridge.
Seneca pointed out that people tend to be reflexively stingy with their money, but almost comically wasteful with their time. There are at least two ways to take this. One is that Seneca thought he used his time better than you and I do, and maybe he did. Another interpretation…
The cables at the heart of the lightspeed, globe-spanning internet run across the grimy, perilous, inaccessible deeps of the sea, in places no one ever sees or visits – until the cables break.
This incredibly ambitious and thoroughly-executed project is by Charlie Humble-Thomas, done while pursuing his Masters in the Design Products program at the RCA. Called Conditional Longevity, it asks the question: "How long should objects last?" Seeking the answer, Humble-Thomas…
How one crew risked radiation, storms, and currents to save Japan from digital isolation.
Oregon recently became the seventh state to pass “right to repair” legislation making it easier, cheaper, and more convenient to repair technology you own. The bill’s passage came…
Not every Phillips head fastener is a Phillips head fastener. If you don't know about Japanese Industrial Standard, now you'll know.
These true lifetime warranties allow you to replace or repair your stuff if it ever breaks or wears out.
The noble but undervalued craft of maintenance could help preserve modernity’s finest achievements, from public transit systems to power grids, and serve as a useful framework for addressing climate change and other pressing planetary constraints.
1.4K votes, 26 comments. 8.3M subscribers in the BeAmazed community. I bet you will /r/BeAmazed! A place to find and share amazing things
Epson has gained some scrutiny in recent weeks after the company disabled a printer that was otherwise working fine, leading to accusations of planned obsolescence. Epson knows its printers will stop working without simple maintenance at a predictable point in the future, and it…
This is the story of how you’re buying your enterprise software the wrong way. Probably your appliances, too. This is an excerpt from my guide, “Enterprise Software Confidential.” This post is also available in Chinese thanks to Xu Zhi. Some years ago, I had a broken GE washer…
Repair Café is here to help you fix your broken items. Join our community of skilled volunteers and get your belongings repaired in a sustainable way.
Maintenance lacks the glamour of innovation—and is harder to measure
Medical device companies have used a range of tactics that have made independent repairs harder, with devastating consequences.
Toshiba has discovered a new way to enforce such planned obsolescence by cutting the repair market off from critical service information. But the cost to society is significant: The e-waste problem is growing; we’re losing thousands of domestic jobs as independent repair shops…
Follow the saga of the Computer History Museum's IBM 1401
We went to Nebraska to meet the farmers fighting John Deere's repair monopoly.
After this walkaround, you'll love the rig, too.
Books in Progress is what we call a “public drafting tool”: Drafts will be made available for comment from the public, allowing for direct collaboration between author and reader.