25 Mar
2025
25 Mar
'25
4:10 p.m.
karl3＠writeme.com wrote: > karl3＠writeme.com wrote: > > karl3＠writeme.com wrote: > > > karl3＠writeme.com wrote: > > > > > > the xkcd for monday was something called "sawstart", a horrible idea that randall likely wrote as a subtle mistake stemming in nerdiness, possibly not unknown > > > > > > the sawstart is in the inverse of a sawstop, it is a special saw that starts cutting when touched by a human hand o_o yes shows randall getting some of the zombies again > > > > > > the interesting parts of the sawstart are: > > > > > - it's somewhat hard to implement > > > > > - it surprises people > > > > > - it's a twist on normal expectations > > > > > > > > > > but it's severely dangerous to build for fun :/ it's a horrible idea! > > > > > > > > what could be made that is nicer than the sawstart? > > > > > > > > also the list archives page has stopped correctly sorting, i have to scroll a bit to find my latest posts/spams > > > > > > so, it's reasonable to make somethat that activates when touched. this is commonly done for touchscreens on devices: note, touchscreens are not metal, which makes it harder. > > > > > > what about a saw that stopped without a guard? it still seems kinda dangerous :s > > > > > > but we could use an explosive charge like they do in the comic, to stop a saw right before a human touches it > > > > > > for actual safety all possible avenues of failure would need review, not only to prevent failure but also to leave margins of safety > > > > arright mister zombie what is going on > > > > did you read a webcomic while being attacked by zombies and they somehow used it to make you more zombielike > > the idea of the saw that safely stops can be done safely! you'd apply the error margins to testing it. you'd start with things like slow-moving paper and putty -- how about something general, where it's a response to worry about things like sawstarts? maybe some kind of robot butler that watches the people in its environment with eyes like a hawk, heroically and reliably preventing horrifying injuries right before they happen, and only if they will happen?