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Here, we discuss common items that need a redesign or paradigm shift

Huntn said:
?? What do you have in mind? How about toothpaste in a tub? :p
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Well, I don't know about the OP, but I buy my toothpaste in cast iron lock boxes. They're a bit heavy in the early morning (and fumbling for the key takes more dexterity than I can muster most mornings), but it's far better then those awful tubes.
 
Non-resealable "bags" in cereal boxes. It ****ing 2015 and cereal packaging hasn't changed in forever.

Clamshell plastic packaging. This **** will survive the nuclear holocaust with the cockroaches.

Yogurt container covers that burp out yogurt when you peel them back.

I'm just getting started.:D
 
I think digital alarm clocks need a makeover.

Changing the alarm setting usually takes some contortion of fingers to do it one handed and then you have to stand there for what seems forever to roll the minutes back to where you want it. Why can't I have a key pad to punch it in? Come to think of it, why does iOS use that silly dial system instead of offering a keypad?

rdowns said:
Non-resealable "bags" in cereal boxes. It ****ing 2015 and cereal packaging hasn't changed in forever.
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The one change I like on cereal boxes is the notch on the top flap that holds the box closed instead of the slot that always ripped out when you tried to put the tab in it.
 
Tomorrow said:
I'm not a car fanatic by any measure, but I can think of very few things about cars that interest me less than how big, how clear, what color, etc. the license plate is.
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If you were a car fanatic you'd recognize how horribly the broad rectangular shape of ugly, cheap, stamped-by-prison labor US license plates detract from the appearance of your car.

The basic shape, dimensions, and proportions of the US plate hasn't changed since Eisenhower was in the White House. Cars looked like this then:

Chevrolet_Bel_Air_1956_4door_Sedan_front.jpg


Every single system, component, and material used on cars has changed in the intervening six decades. From the tires, to the glass, the gas it burns, the lightbulbs that light the road in front, to the materials used to form the body panels and upholster the seats.



Its way past time for a change. US plates are ugly, ineffective, and ruin the valence body panels of half the cars they go on. So much so that half the "enthusiast' car owners I know risk fines and tickets by omitting a front plate altogether.

And since this is an Apple-themed website, need I remind your of Steve Jobs famous aversion to the hideous plates we still have?
 
mobilehaathi said:
Well, I don't know about the OP, but I buy my toothpaste in cast iron lock boxes. They're a bit heavy in the early morning (and fumbling for the key takes more dexterity than I can muster most mornings), but it's far better then those awful tubes.
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Are you..... LOL. :D

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vrDrew said:
My pet peeve?

US-specification automobile license plates.

Here is, for example a 2015 BMW 3-Series with a US plate
Image

And its European spec. alternative:
Image

The European-style license plate is, on just about every level, vastly superior.

Not only is it narrower, fitting into todays sleek, aerodynamic body designs much more cleanly; but its simple large characters are much more easily read by traffic-control systems. And remarkably free of the hideous clutter that turns most US plate designs into hideous billboards for the questionable charms of various locales:

Image

If you want to tell the world how much you love dolphins - buy a bumper sticker. Lets start a movement, here, to bring sanity to the humble US license plate.
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I know of several US States that are eliminating the requirement for a front plate, probably to save money. Does that suffice? :)
 
Sleeping. I hate sleeping. There needs to be a way to avoid it. It's the cousin of death.
 
vrDrew said:
If you were a car fanatic you'd recognize how horribly the broad rectangular shape of ugly, cheap, stamped-by-prison labor US license plates detract from the appearance of your car.
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Odd. I don't find it ugly at all, actually.

Every single system, component, and material used on cars has changed in the intervening six decades. From the tires, to the glass, the gas it burns, the lightbulbs that light the road in front, to the materials used to form the body panels and upholster the seats.
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So change for change's sake is good? Those components were changed to either save costs, improve performance, or increase safety. What do we gain by changing license plates, besides a whole helluva lot of cars whose bumpers or body panels can't accommodate the new shape?

Its way past time for a change. US plates are ugly, ineffective, and ruin the valence body panels of half the cars they go on. So much so that half the "enthusiast' car owners I know risk fines and tickets by omitting a front plate altogether.
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To each his own, I suppose. *shrug*

And since this is an Apple-themed website, need I remind your of Steve Jobs famous aversion to the hideous plates we still have?
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Now this is just ridiculous, seriously. I'm supposed to dislike something because Steve Jobs disliked it? Really? :rolleyes:
 
rdowns said:
Non-resealable "bags" in cereal boxes. It ****ing 2015 and cereal packaging hasn't changed in forever.

Clamshell plastic packaging. This **** will survive the nuclear holocaust with the cockroaches.

Yogurt container covers that burp out yogurt when you peel them back.

I'm just getting started.:D
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Oh, agreed. Very good list.

A few of my pet dislikes, listed, there.

Add to that old style milk cartons (I never managed to open one other than backwards).

And, yes, also those airtight sealed coffee bags of pre-ground coffee (again, I have never managed to open one with out spilling some of the coffee).
 
Scepticalscribe said:
Oh, agreed. Very good list.

A few of my pet dislikes, listed, there.

Add to that old style milk cartons (I never managed to open one other than backwards).

And, yes, also those airtight sealed coffee bags of pre-ground coffee (again, I have never managed to open one with out spilling some of the coffee).
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Use tea bags then your problems are solved!
 
roadbloc said:
Sleeping. I hate sleeping. There needs to be a way to avoid it. It's the cousin of death.
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Apparently, a small percentage of the population can get by on considerably less sleep than everyone else. While most everyone else needs 6-8 hours, they can get by on 3-4 without any ill effects.

A rumored fractional percentage of those people need practically no sleep at all.

It's a genetic condition. What this means is we need to find these people, and harvest their genes for our own benefit.
 
Ahh, yeah, was going to mention cartons. But I don't actually see those around much anymore (and when I do, they have screw on caps). They switched the caps only in the last few years too, so that solved my problem with them.

And yeah, so many things you can peel back and get all over yourself. Hate that.
 
What about those horrid little plastic packets you get on planes - the ones (because you cannot carry a penknife) you are utterly unable to open, until, that is, someone (perhaps the passenger sitting beside you) rips them open - or you try to savage them (unsuccessfully) with your teeth - and most of their miserable contents splash out on your hands, leaving you utterly unable to use them, as intended on your dish of almost inedible food?
 
Band-Aid packaging.

I don't know how many times I've been fumbling around with a bleeding finger, fishing a Band-Aid out of the box, opening the wrapper, and then peeling off the adhesive backing.

I realize that sterilization is a huge issue, but I'm imagining a dispenser roll like the take-a-number at the deli.
 
  1. Inkjet printers that use half the content of a cartridge to clean the nozzles
  2. Computer designs that favor form over function (ha!)
  3. Bluetooth mice that lose connectivity for no apparent reason
  4. Boxes of facial tissues that force you to waste the first few to get them started
As for toothpaste tubes, I pride myself on getting every last bit before I throw them away. Same thing with gas tanks in cars.
 
Renzatic said:
Apparently, a small percentage of the population can get by on considerably less sleep than everyone else. While most everyone else needs 6-8 hours, they can get by on 3-4 without any ill effects.
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I must be one of them as that's all I ever seem to have. I still would much prefer it if I could just stay up though. I could get so much more done.
 
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