C threw a hissy fit in the store the other day. Mainly because the ipod had died in untimely fashion - 2 weeks after the warranty had expired. He could have saved his curses for the next swelthering day if he had known “technological Murphy’s Law” wasn’t a personal gizmo attack but a matter of manipulative business savvy. Cliff Kuang’s Burning Question column in the May issue of Wired explains all this easily. “Some gadgets fail just outside of warranty because that’s exactly how they are designed. Products that last forever do not a profitable multinational conglomerate make..” It all boils down to a far flung business model conpiracy, what we’ve all known intuitively.. that gizmos die so you would have to buy more. “But manufacturers also don’t want to get a bad rap for shilling crap, so they engineer their hardware to last just long enough for consumers to feel like they got their money’s worth. They guarantee the gear for that period of time - and not a second longer.” Apparently “Warranty Calculation” is a serious science and there are complex formulas calculated and set in place to ensure C’s ipod never stood a chance beyond its seemingly pre-mature death.

Own a Marty McFly ‘Back to the Future II’ cap

And while we’re on the subject of cool geek info, Amazon’s releasing replicas of Marty McFly’s iridecent cap! Nothing cooler for Butter Factory get-ups than an accessory of the Future (2015, ok!) FROM 1989 in full ultra-reflectvie rainbow splendour and ‘futuristic fastening’ velcro closures.

Doc: No! It can’t be; I just sent you back to the future!

Marty McFly: No, I know. You DID send me back to the future. But I’m back - I’m back FROM the future.

Doc: Great Scott!

Awesome. Better than Mambo on Wednesday nites at Zouk.