> But the first thing I did when buying an apartment was rip out the silly "smart home" system, installing back mechanical controls everywhere. Much happier.

I am afraid the day may come when I can't get audio equipment with a mechanical volume control (without a layer of software in between). Even today, some laptops rely on software to mute their speakers when the headphone jack is connected.

I dread the scenario of being in a public place, like a library or about to give a talk, resuming my laptop from suspend, and loud music (or worse!) blaring out of the speakers, with all audio controls unresponsive as the system churns (or crashes!) under the load of resuming.

> I dread the scenario of being in a public place, like a library or about to give a talk, resuming my laptop from suspend, and loud music (or worse!) blaring out of the speakers, with all audio controls unresponsive as the system churns (or crashes!) under the load of resuming.

It's very much this why I fully prep my laptop before I need to give a talk or go into a meeting where I might need my laptop (as much as I despise laptop-filled meetings). All applications closed except for whatever I need in that setting.

Yeah. On some devices, even the "power-off" button is software (talk about powerlessness!).

I dread the day this growth-at-any-cost marketing machine takes over politically, and these half-assed over-hyped systems (self driving cars come to mind) become mandatory, with no alternative.

Same. I thought about it after a few surprised reactions, and concluded: I got interested in technology when I was a kid because you could take it apart, tinker with it, understand it. That's less true than it used to be - things in general are more complex and opaque and less repairable. A "technology"/"magic" distinction, perhaps.