Tech has failed us (a rant)

[Reverend Jim]

In the last two weeks I renewed my cable package (TV/internet/phone) and in the process got upgraded to a new, faster modem. Three months ago I bought a new ChromeCast device and was able to connect it to my old modem/network using my existing Android 6 cell phone.

Today I tried to connect my ChromeCast to the new modem. I was unable. After spending more than an hour on a chat session with google I was informed that

1. The Google Home App (which was not visible on Google Play) no longer runs on anything older than Android 8
2. The Windows app that used to work is no longer supported and has been yanked
3. There is no browser app available to do the reconnect

So now, in order to use my $50 ChromeCast, I must drop $200+ on a new cell phone, or even more on a tablet.

Before you ask, my phone is not upgradable to a newer Android version. I tried to create a USB boot stick with Android 9 but just ran up against Windows Security informing me that the device was not secure. I tried to build a VMWare Android machine but it would not use my laptop's Bluetooth.

Wasn't tech supposed to make our lives better with easy interconnectivity?

[rproffitt]

I cheated last time. I kept my old WiFi SSID and password on the new router to avoid setting up all the smart stuff.

[JamesCherrill]

Me too. Over 20 devices connected to the wifi, many with no keyboard and tortuous setup procedures (not just printer and tv, but dishwasher, oven, Tesla charger etc). No way am I ever going to change the SSID or password. I know that’s crazy, but it’s not my fault.

[Dani]

Why does your dishwasher need wifi?

I can understand with things like an oven, because we use that here so it automatically knows the precise cooking temperature and duration for any food.

But a dishwasher?

[Reverend Jim]

I have a Logitech wireless mouse. With Logitech Options installed it allows me to reassign the mouse buttons for specific applications. For example, the button on the left side defaults to Windows Task Switcher. I set it to play/pause in VLC Media Player, toggle full screen in my web browsers, PDF and ebook reader apps, etc. For several months now it would periodically stop responding to app-specific commands (fixed by rerunning the Options app) so I finally got fed up with it and contacted Logitech Support. They said I should be using the newest version, called Options Plus. I installed that and it seemed to work, but a few days later, Brave Browser stopped responding to app-specific actions. I tried rebooting and all the usual fixes. Nothing. Logitech said to uninstall Options Plus and re-install it. I tried that but then it refused to connect to my mouse (it had no problem identifying it before). Support said to download a previous Options Plus version. I followed their explicit directions and got to the download page which had all the versions listed. However, only the current version had a download button. When I tried the current Options Plus again it recognized my mouse, but mis-identified it as a Triathlon rather than a Marathon mouse. Regardless, it was at least talking. After restoring my settings from a Logitech online backup I saw that all my mouse specific assigns were gone.

I'm assuming their solution is to just buy a new mouse, which they could make obsolete six months from now with yet another software update, forcing me to buy another mouse.

Tech has failed us.

[Reverend Jim]

Why does your dishwasher need wifi?

Exactly. And with the current state of security - everyone wants to skip the testing and rush their appliances to market - everything is hackable. So why would I want a wifi enabled security camera, dishwasher, refrigerator, stove, thermostat, etc.?

[rproffitt]

My brother and I installed Solar power systems recently so things that you would never imagined to have BlueTooth (BT) or WiFi now connects to our network and web so we can manage energy use.

In my case it's my EVSE (car charger) which is on Wifi so I programmed it to charge one hour after sun up till one hour before sun down. I wanted to avoid using grid power.
My brother has an EVSE but also a new Heat Pump Water Heater which he programmed to ramp up the temperature prior to 4PM then backoff till 9PM (higher grid rates) and then shutdown from 11P to 6AM. For him this works great. Now his refrigerator has BT and WiFi so it can chill a little more before 4PM to again use more solar power and less grid power.

The results of these are low to zero electric bills. Here we are reading and hearing a lot about sky high electric utility bills but my brother and I are not seeing these bills increase. For him it's running 10 to 20 a month and for me after one year it looks like I paid zero for my electric bill.

Yes, there's a reason to get connected appliances and car chargers.

[Dani]

I couldn’t live without a Nest thermostat or doorbell at this point.

[Reverend Jim]

Here in Winnipeg it can get mighty cold. In the winter (before retiring) I had a timer in the garage to turn on my car block-heater two hours before going to work. Didn't need Bluetooth or wifi to program. Didn't need software updates which would tell me my timer was no longer supported, and was not hackable.

It's more than 30 years old and it still works.

[Dani]

It doesn’t sound like you’ve ever lived anywhere with wildly unpredictable weather. I’m familiar with the old school remote car start that was useful back in NY winters. But here in CA, when you’re expecting it to cool into the 50s tonight, and instead you’re laying in bed tossing and turning because it’s randomly in the mid-80s outside instead and ridiculously warm in the bedroom, being able to adjust the thermostat from bed is a godsend.

Or, if you’re like me and have COPD and realllllllly struggle with California wildfires, having the air purifiers turn on throughout the house automatically, when I wasn’t home and didn’t even realize a fire had broken out yet, upon detection of poor air quality outdoors, has saved me a trip to the emergency room.

[Reverend Jim]

being able to adjust the thermostat from bed is a godsend

I thought that's what husbands were for ;-)

We have a programmable (but not wifi) thermostat that keeps our house at the proper temperature day and night, winter or summer. Recently Bill Maher was talking about a friend who was raving about his new vape pen. It came with an app so he could turn it on from his smart phone. As opposed to pressing a button on the side of the pen.

George Carlin once said that if you took two things that have never been nailed together, and nailed them together, some idiot would buy it. Substitute bluetooth and app for nailed together and it still holds true. I don't need an app on a wifi enabled fridge to keep track of what is inside (I have a brain that does that), or to check from the store how much milk I have left. Especially when every (rude word) appliance and device needs its own app.

I understand how having COPD might make some features attractive, but I would think you'd want your filters on all the time. We installed an electrostatic filter on out house air system when we thought one of our boys might have asthma or allergies (he didn't) and we left it on all the time.

On TV you see how in five seconds a cop can take a picture or video and send it to someone. That never happens in real life where you have to

1. unlock your phone
2. start the camera app
3. start the email app
4. compose the email
5. find the address
6. attach the picture
7. send it

And even assuming all of the apps are already open you still have to flip between them. So IMO having dozens of apps, each with its own quirky, undocumented, and likely buggy interface is just insane. "Sorry the house is so cold but my phone battery is dead".

[Reverend Jim]

BTW since re-installing Options Plus this morning, the software is now telling me there is an update available. Can't wait to see what it breaks.

[Dani]

I thought that's what husbands were for ;-)

It is! Insomniac me doesn't want to be exposed to all that blue light from my phone.

We have a programmable (but not wifi) thermostat that keeps our house at the proper temperature day and night, winter or summer.

I like to keep the windows open all day long when I'm working, and my husband is super against having the thermostat on when the windows are open. Something about wasting electricity. So the thermostat tends to get switched on depending on comfort level at bedtime.

I understand how having COPD might make some features attractive, but I would think you'd want your filters on all the time.

The air purifiers we have are medical grade and literally sound like loud airplanes taking off, and are strategically located based on negative air pressure (e.g. where outside air tends to seep into the house even with all doors and windows closed). I get a very bad migraine if I am in the same room as either of them when they're on. We do keep them on a lower level if we have company over (e.g. for COVID reasons), but we need them on full blast to keep the smoky air under control when the outdoor air quality is at dangerous or potentially hazardous levels (e.g. AQI > 100).

[rproffitt]

Found the meme for Jim! https://imgur.com/gallery/W6VoXSe

[JamesCherrill]

Why does your dishwasher need wifi?

It doesn’t. But it comes with it anyway.

[Reverend Jim]

Here's yet another example.

The remote control for my cable TV box went belly up. After chatting with the provider tech support they agreed to mail me a new one. When it arrived several days later I looked at the pairing instructions.

1. Point the remote at the cable box
2. Press the mic button until the menu appears on your TV
3. Follow the instructions on the menu to complete pairing

Seems simple enough except for one small detail. There was no way to navigate the menu using the remote until after pairing the remote. No matter how many times I read through the instructions, I could see no way to complete the pairing.

I got back into a chat session with my provider and was told the following:

1. Press the menu and info buttons on the remote for five seconds until the LED turns green
2. When a three digit code appears on your TV, press the code on your remote

The instructions were simple and worked perfectly. When I asked the tech person why they would send instructions with the remote that clearly had no way of working, the answer was "I have no idea".

[Reverend Jim]

One more story:

In July I bought a new laptop from Best Buy (BB). It was an ASUS. It came with a 512GB SSD and an empty slot to add another 2.5" drive. It wasn't until last week that I got around to adding a spare 240GB SSD I had available. I opened it up, plugged in the cable and closed it up again.

But it wouldn't recognize the drive. I tried reseating the cable, but nothing. I took it back to BB and had the Geek Squad take a look. They said the drive was functional but the port that the cable plugs into was corroded. Agreeing that it shouldn't be, they said they would ship it back to ASUS. Of course I first took an image of my C partition, backed up my D partition data files, then reset it to factory. I left the new SSD and cable inside so they could verify when they replaced the port. It got sent to ASUS on Monday. I got it back Friday via UPS. The depot notes said:

Faulty SATA port

Reinstalled the OS and updated BIOS and firmware

Client's data erased due to OS performance or corruption issues
Client acknowledged that data is not required
Programs and applications will need to be re-installed

Unit passed quality control check and Client's fault has been resolved

Note that they said the SATA port was faulty, but not that they had replaced it.

The first thing I did when I got it home was to boot it up and get into Disk Manager, which showed only one drive. I powered off and opened it up. The second drive was there, and cabled up. I closed it up and rebooted again. Still no drive. I opened up a Terminal Admin session and ran DISKPART with LIST DISK. It also showed only one drive.

I have to wonder exactly what Unit passed quality control check and Client's fault has been resolved means?

[Reverend Jim]

The conclusion...

Took the laptop back to Best Buy and got them to swap it for another (same make and model) ASUS. They put in my drive and when it booted up and we got through the setup and...

It wouldn't recognize the drive. They got a new SSD off the shelf and tried it. Wouldn't recognize that one either. I got my money back. Are there any decent under $1000 laptops out there any more? I'm looking for 15.6" screen (or thereabouts) and at least a 1TB SSD.