Surprised no one has commented even though there is over a 100 views! Could it be that they were so shocked at viewing the info/doc they became tongue-tied!

Hi Guys,

In case you have not watched the latest Zeitgeist Documentary I suggest you do so.

The full title is, 'ZEITGEIST: MOVING FORWARD | Free Full Socio-Economic Documentary | Conspiracy Theory Collection' and it can be located here, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoEVJQTUqdw

The 'Conspiracy Theory Collection' at the tail end of the title caused me to raise an eyebrow as many people regard this description as questionable to say the least.

However, over the past few years I have noticed that many subjects tagged with the 'Conspiracy Theory' definition have in many cases turned out to be factual.

Mike

Fredo, I laughed when I saw your cursor hovering over 2091 for a second. I took the bait. Alas all here will be long gone by the time 2091 comes. I was at my local Planning Department yesterday lodging a planning application. I got talking to one of the staff and they proudly directed me to a lovely model of Ennis (my town) showing a whole load to new municipal projects that are in the pipeline. I was impressed to say the least. I then asked about the time line ..... the guy said it was planned for 2040! I said maybe my grandchildren should be looking at the model! I think he got my point.

Well done Fredo.

This will bring some sanity to the heavy duty users that are struggling with diminishing screen real-estate. I've only one question. Do you know something we don't?

Mike

Jean, I know a carpenter that could put it all together. Only problem is that he is locked up in an asylum at present! I understand the last complicated roof drove him stone mad

TIG has a good point, Taxi Cabs not to mention UBER and other similar services offer a good service. Still, folks want their personal transport. I also think a lot of it might be status driven also .... nay, I know a lot of it is status driven.

So, maybe the trick would be for some car manufacturing company to grab the nettle and produce an upgradable car that is VERY fashionable thus satisfying the status seekers.

Anyone interested in joining me in the formulation / design of such a vehicle .... I'm serious!

Mike

Jo-Ke,

I'm impressed and have to say that when you start something you stick with it.

Mike

Like you Mike, my commute is about 30sec, a little longer if I detour to make a coffee.

Maybe a stepping stone to a comprehensive car use solution might be Community Car Sharing'. This is taking off in some areas of the UK and the more I read about it, the more sense it makes. My car sits in the drive for most of the week with perhaps two excursions to the supermarket. I'm lucky to have a convenience store across the road from me also a mini supermarket up the road.

http://www.communitycarshare.org

Now if you really want to look at the downside of owning a car, check this article out,
'The Surprising Lifetime Cost of Car Ownership' here,
https://www.doughroller.net/money-management/surprising-lifetime-cost-car-ownership/#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20American%20Automobile%20Association%20(AAA%20it,I%20don%E2%80%99t%20think%20that%20tells%20the%20whole%20story.

I think the solution is not far down the road. Roll along the day when I can order my self driving car to take me into town for a good piss up with the lads and again call same vehicle to drive me home when I'm legless. Joking aside, folks living in reasonably built up areas really don't need 2 tons of metal at our beck and call, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. In most cases a car is needed for just a few hours a day at most. Also I would have no problem sharing a self driving car with others during peek demand periods.

When self driving cars become safe and some smart company launches such a business, people will catch on to the idea and the big car manufacturers may be in serious trouble. I know Uber kinda works this way but it's only available in large towns and cities also a driverless car will cost far less in fares.

Guys,

I started a fresh thread on 'upgradable autos' here,
https://sketchucation.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=179&t=73687

I located an excellent thesis by Daniel Couttolenc which shows a way to 30 year car life cycles.

Mike

Hi Guys,

I started a topic on Apple sustainability a few days ago which drifted onto auto sustainability so I'm starting a fresh topic on the latter as I imagine there are many here that may be interested in the subject.

I've done a search on what's happening in this area and have to report that there looks to be no car manufacturing companies going down this road (excuse the bad pun) currently.

However I did come across an interesting article on Behance, 'Re-Thinking the Lifecycle of a Vehicle', a BFA Thesis by Daniel Couttolenc. The name of the Thesis is 'Terrestrial' and can be located here, https://www.behance.net/gallery/4363645/Re-Thinking-the-Lifecycle-of-a-Vehicle-TERRESTRIAL

It's well worth watching if for the great graphics alone but there is much more to be learned about, particularly the aim to bring cars in general from a 10 year lifespan to a 30 year lifespan. Now that's worth thinking about.

Mike

Hi Glen,

Of course a car can be upgraded and more so souped-up! But I think this route/option doesn't appeal to the average owner/driver. I imagine many average owners/drivers think their car becomes substandard once a newer model comes out.

Most folks are lead along rather than think for themselves when it comes to consumables.

Dale,

Yep, Ford et al kicked of the built-in obsolescence game and they all followed. I think if some car company produced an upgradable car they would be on a winner given that may young people these days actually have a conscience when it comes to wastage of natural resources.

Isn't it strange how folks will quite happily live in a house for their entire lifetime with little or no updating other than standard maintenance but when it come to cars they always want the latest model even if there isn't a great MPG increase.

BTW, I have just installed Big Sur. I was surprised to see that all went well for a day or so but then I ran into some problems with my 3dconnexion devices and iPad connexion via sidecar. I got it sorted out after some trial and error. I think it will take a further few weeks before I will feel secure.

mike

Hi Dale,

I agree with you, yes, 'positive steps, should be applauded' and I will always applaud such steps.

One great thing about Apple products is that they hold up quite well in the second hand retail market. But I still wish they would produce an upgradable MacBook. The MacBook's aluminium body is more than capable of 10 years service and could do so if Apple allowed upgradability that kept users up to date when it comes to the OS

I would be prepared to pay a premium for swap-in components. This surely would allow Apple to generate reasonable profits.

Then again, I can't see this happening as I feel the key objective is profit alone. I think Apple are really somewhat hypocritical when they talk about carbon neutrality.

This business plan is at play in many consumer products, cars especially. As for women's clothes .... I don't even go there

Mike

Hi Guys,

Just watched the latest Apple event which was introduced by Tim Cook. He did a good job but I have to say, I still miss Jobs!

Apple Events

iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 with Apple Intelligence, Apple Watch Series 10, Apple Watch Ultra 2, AirPods 4, AirPods Pro 2 hearing health, AirPods Max.

Apple (www.apple.com)

Tim, seems very proud of Apple's record on carbon neutrality when it comes to buildings etc and their plans to be totally carbon neutral in all things Apple in the next few years.

I doubt that will ever happen with the current Apple profit plan. I have been an Mac user since they switched to the Intel chip and have never looked back. Since I switched I have very rarely had to bring any of my MacBook Pros into the repair shop. Fortunately I was able to fix the operating problems my self. As far as hardware problems went, I don't remember any but again memory can be selective at times.

My main gripe with current Mac devices is that they are for the most part non upgradable when it comes to hardware. Until Apple introduces a laptop/desktop computer that is reasonably upgradable, things like memory chips come to mind, they can forget about their target.

I think they will never be able to say they they are truly carbon neutral as their current profit policy will always work against this aim. Maybe if they set up a scheme whereby obsolete Macs were refurbed by them and given to third world children/schools they could entertain a hope.

Mike

'Plastic, plastic, plastic everywhere'. we are being smothered by the stuff.

There is something we can do about it though. A case in point. To my shame, I drink a lot of Coca-Cola....I like the bloody stuff About 6 months ago I noticed that Coco-Cola stopped using shrink wrap on their 6 packs. From what I understand this particular grade of plastic was non recyclable. They now use a very neat card holder which is 100% recyclable.

I now examine all plastic containers that my shopping comes in and email the companies suggesting that they look at alternative recyclable packaging/containers if its not the case they are currently doing so.

The latest company I've emailed is Rowntree's of York the KitKat makers.....I like my KitKat with a nice cup of tea! I pointed out that KitKat used to be wrapped in tin foil with a paper cover which were recyclable and that they should go back to this wrapping and away from the the non recyclable plastic wrapper they currently use. I imagine if enough folks voice their dissatisfaction with regard to a company's product wrapping methods they will sit up and take notice. Its always good to mention another company that does so and all the better if its a competitor

The great thing is that its now so easy to contact companies by email and if you install the free version of Mail Tracker you will be able to tell if they have actually opened your email.

On the subject of plastic dumping, I saw a news article last night on TV. It was about a group of volunteers in canoes collecting plastic bottles etc from rivers and disposing of them properly. The lady that was interviewed made a simple statement that struck a cord with me, "If everyone of us 7 billion people did our little bit there would be no problem"

Hi Pete,

It's this,
@solo said:

“Climate policies also have costs that often vastly outweigh their climate benefits.”
that makes a certain amount of sense to me. I think he is arguing that the poorer countries should be given a chance to develop their economies and increase their population's standard of living before we as a whole go into battle against Climate Change.

Mike

Hi Liam,

Yes, indeed it appears look that way. Could it be that many folks have been so brainwashed into accepting that anything that might appear to hint of 'Climate Denial' is taboo? I sadly think this is now the case.

I can assure all that Bjorn Lomborg is definitely not a so called 'Climate Denier'. On the contrary he is an independent thinker that puts forward very practical ideas on how to tackle climate change that in my opinion are doable from a financial point of view rather than the blanket (one size fits all) policies being proposed by The Paris Agreement/UNFCCC.

Bjorn appears to me to have no hidden agenda, he is simply looking at the problem statistically from a political scientist's (which he is) point of view.

Nearly forgot to ask, Liam, did you manage to view Bjorn's talk?

Mike

Hi Guys,

My Kickstarter Campaign didn't succeed in reaching it's goal and has ended. While a little disappointed, I must says that I've learned a great amount from campaign feedback.

From what I see, the main reasons for its failure to reach the pledge goal was the actual MouseDeck price.

I have now looked again at the design and in particular the amount of material involved and I have come up with a redesign that brings the material costs down substantially, as much as 50% in the case of the MouseDeck and its clamps.

I have just received a 3D print/prototype of the revised MouseDeck design and it looks to be a runner. Also the reduced weight will substantially lower the postage costs as they were coming in a little high.

As regards the Multi-Holder. I feel I can also simplify this, thus reducing the material cost. I will have this redesign work completed over the coming days and then have a 3D print/prototype made to see how well the revised design works.

I will post my progress on this topic and I would appreciate hearing any thoughts, good, bad, or indifferent you may have.

Mike

Hi Guys,

Like many of you I have an ongoing interest in the Climate Change issue and have been following along on the subject for quite a few years. I was, until listening to Bjorn Lomborg , sitting on the fence as regards to best way to tackle the problem.

I watched, Bjorn Lomborg | Don't waste trillions on BAD Climate Policy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otsJno55J0g last night and after thinking about what he says and proposes, I have reached to conclusion that this guy has got it right and his ideas should be implemented worldwide.

The YouTube video/presentation is an hour and twenty minutes long and well worth watching if you, like me, have been searching for a level headed approach on how to tackle the problem.

If you manage to view the video I'd like to hear your thoughts on what Bjorn Lomborg says.

Mike