mel jacobson on fri 11 aug 00
if you are going to join the hi tech world of computer
aided kilns, ramps, oxyprobes, digital read out and the like,
one should be prepared to understand that they are fragile
instruments and need constant attention. it is part of having
them.
there is no constant guarantee they are going to work all the time.
it takes cleaning and tweaking. wires come loose, probes get
covered with carbon, things go wrong....we do live in a dusty world.
just as we have all found out with home computers, there is no assurance
they will always be running `just fine`.
i have spent a great deal of time over the past five years learning to
do simple repair and upgrades of all my electronic systems. i get the
books, read, pull maintenance, and still have to send my oxyprobes to
nils about once every two years. (i have two of them)
one of the most important tools i own is a set of floppy discs with
windows 98 on them. the first disc is a boot drive that starts any pc
computer even if the os is gone. i worked hard with the bill gates'
people to get that set of discs...saved my bacon many times, and
have helped a few friends with dead computers.
electricity needs clean paths...just like your coils on the electric kiln.
they get carboned up and dirty at the junction with your power and
bam, arc and heat fries them. the most common breakdown in the
electric kiln.
taking the cover off your computer is a scary thing...i remember the
first time i did it. what i found was the worlds largest dust ball
collection. got myself a can of air and cleaned that puppy really
well. next got
a book of computer inside maintenance and started to explore. it is
really easy. colored wires, plugs that fit only one socket, big sockets
that take only one kind of item. i have taken a throw away computer
apart, totally, stuck it back together, got the wires correct, added
a new cd rom (it had a bad short) and sharlene has her own computer, did it
again and my son has one.
if every time something goes haywire (wonderful term, it means the item is
repaired with hay wire) you have to
call in a tech, well, you will go broke fast. i have always told my students
that when something that you own goes bad, take it apart, look at
how it is made, then throw it away. i had a big chat with holly at
the last workshop in tennessee, her husband brought home a computer
from work and it was just sitting in the basement, i told her to `take
it apart, check it out, see what makes it tick...take the mystery out
of the damn thing`.
as with most things, fear drives the car. learn to control fear of things
and your life gets easy. i buy my daughter tools...good tools and she
knows how to use them. one of those 50 buck rechargeable drills with
about 50 kinds of ends is a must gift for every daughter and son in the
world. buy one for yourself. if you are a stud, get the 12 or 14 amp
drill driver. i'm a makida man myself, but have just bolted to the
bright yellow one. i have never counted tools as a purchase that is
not necessary. every tool you buy saves you a great deal of money.
there is no point in your life that you cannot start doing your own
repairs. it is just a matter of trying and doing, and getting experience.
it goes with the life of the craft/potter.
i have only been actively involved with computers for about 5 years.
i can now build my own from scratch. i made a big commitment
a few years back, i was not going to learn computers from my grandchildren,
i was going to teach them...and i do. my 11 year old
grandson calls me a `computer freak`...i love it. but, the perception
out there is that older people cannot learn new things...bullshit.
kids are just as dumb today as they were 25 years ago. they just do
not harbor fear of electronics.
we have taken a great many hand eye things away from kids. my brother and
i made stick model airplanes as kids, we roamed the alleys of minneapolis
looking for `good junk`....and we often found it, we made stuff all the
time. i have
said forever, the reason a kid gets a bike is to take it apart, not ride it.
about fifteen years ago i heard my neighbor screaming at his kid
`don't ever mess with your bike yourself, we take things like that
to schwinn`.....i pulled michael aside and told him to go into my garage
anytime,
pull down the door, and use any tools that i have in there. he did, and
he is a great fixer, became a carpenter and repair man. his father does
not know what end of a screwdriver to use. (or, more likely, refuses to.)
i could actually teach the `junk man`, david hendley a few tricks. but, then
he has the title, so there goes the glory.
mel
a couple of our hay creek women have taken the welding course
at vocational school, man, can they weld and braze. makes me smile.
i suggested they do that, and they did. andrea just graduated from
cranbrook, in fibers, but she went to cranbrook knowing how to throw
pots, weld, cast metal, use tools. she is a beautiful korean woman,
and her last name is rosenberg, her business card has a picture of
her face with the words.
`i am korean`. she is a wonder with little fear.
FROM MINNETONKA, MINNESOTA, USA
http://www.pclink.com/melpots (website)
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