this post was submitted on 26 Sep 2024
1009 points (98.3% liked)
Technology
59772 readers
3191 users here now
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Our Rules
- Follow the lemmy.world rules.
- Only tech related content.
- Be excellent to each another!
- Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
- Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
- Politics threads may be removed.
- No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
- Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
- Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
Approved Bots
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
We probably shouldn't let people repair their own brake pads but that's another argument. Not enough people die from randoms repairing their own brake pads. Repair an insulin pump the wrong way and it will absolutely kill you. Oxygen masks, CPAP machines, pace makers. So many medical devices that people rely on for life or death care.
I'm all for right to repair. But having seen some of the thing people have done to repair safety items I have serious doubts about the efficacy of someone repairing something wrong and killing their grandma. I can appreciate that not everyone feels the same way. I can appreciate that there are absolutely people out there who can and do repair their own devices, cars, machinery etc, and they may do it well. But there are always going to be people out there who don't know what they're doing but will try and then we'll hear about them on the news because they touched a capacitor or something.
The FDA found there isn't evidence that 3rd party repair is any less safe than 1st party repair.
If one part needs to be replaced and the company who owns the patients/copyright tells the manufacturer to not sell it to others then the patient cost is needlessly a whole new machine. How many lives would be saved by lowering cost of getting medical equipment working?
I read the article. Third party repair not being your grandson who's replacing the seal on your CPAP mask, because that's not what I mean not does it mean going to a third party repair place.
It being less safe for the vast majority doesn't mean that there aren't going to be people who get it wrong. People repair their brakes wrong all the time. It's absolutely caused accidents. But not enough to be statistically important in the grand scheme of 8 billion people. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen or that it can't.
There's a reason a lot of YouTube videos that show you how to repair things are "for educational purposes only". It's because they can be held liable if something bad happens because you followed their guide.
It also allows end users to install parts superior to OEM, improving braking capabilities, and preventing accidents.
Any automotive technician can tell you that manufacturers take engineering shortcuts, resulting in a product with certain deficiencies. The manufacturer's motivation is to put out a product that widely appeals to the general public. They want nothing to do with a product specifically tailored to the needs of a particular individual.