WorldWide Drilling Resource

me he could remove the entire engine from his Volkswagen Beetle in less than an hour. In later years, Volkswagen went away from the all-encompassing philosophy and, in large part, their customers went away from them. There is a reason cars (and a lot of other things) have numerous gadgets, computers controlling everything (with limited success), and unique one-of-a-kind parts where standard, proven, off-the-shelf parts would work equally well. Various computer-controlled parts mean numerous electrical connections, which is the weakest point in any electrical system. Nonstandard parts mean lower production quantities, which mean higher prices. This is purposely building in unreliability and increased maintenance the car owners, in most cases, cannot do themselves. An elderly widow I knew had an electrically adjustable seat in her car which had a flimsy plastic switch lever that broke off. The plastic switch lever cost the car manufacturer a few cents to buy, and a metal lever would have made much more sense given this lever would often “catch” clothing as people would get into and out of the car. This widow was told by the car dealer the lever could not be replaced and she would have to buy an entirely new seat for over $200, plus installation. This, along with a few other similarly needed repairs, cost more than the car was worth at the time, so she had to look for another car. Along those same lines, why do we need electric car windows? Hand cranks work equally as well moving the window up and down its track. The hand crank needs no power, is very reliable with no motors, switches, and wiring required. Some have maintained the hand-crank windows are safer if the car ends up in water, such as a flood, which could trap the occupants. Most new cars nowadays have electric windows. Even though computers are a big mystery for many people, computers can be built to be very rugged and reliable, and the same principles apply. They are: j Use only the components you need to get the job done, and nothing more. j Use the proper components for the task, and test the finished product thoroughly before releasing it to the public. j Adding unsuitable or unnecessary components has never been a substitute for diligent research. Even with computers, almost always, simpler is better. Britt Britt Storkson may be contacted via e-mail to michele@worldwidedrillingresource.com 5. **0 ) ##/'*% - "# &+1 -!& ,-') &# -( './ +/#) '* /)'* 0-% '*$+ /*1 /#-1#)) ..+!' /'+* +-% 4 -'" 2 *" /0-" 2 -# ($ ./ *" 0*!& - "# &+1 #!&*'! ) #..'+*. -'" 2 '%&/ '**#- !&+) -.&', 0!/'+* ++- -'3#. Storkson cont’d from page 17. 48 FEBRUARY 2017 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® Looking for the Easy Way? Call our Public R e l a t i o n s Pr o f ess i ona l s today and put them to work for you. For the best coverage, distribu- tion, and pricing, don’t settle for less when we can give you more! 850-547-0102