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Anecdotal Case Stud...
 

Anecdotal Case Study in Squeegee Design and Use...  

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dcwilson
(@dcwilson)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 2358
28/08/2007 10:08 am  

My father-in-law has a very large shower at his house for use after the a soak in the spa. He has for years hung various kinds of squeegee on the shower door and asked all of us to "please" squeegee the glass to prevent water spots. We all use the latest squeegee a few times and then stop using it. He finally gave up on squeegees and just hung a very nice chamois cloth on the door. Now everyone happily wipes the shower door down, even the little kids think the chamois is fun and easy. I am boggled at how many millions of dollars have been spent on designing squeegees for shower stalls that persons inevitably find too awkward (or too something) to use, only to discover that persons like to use a simple chamois cloth. Now, its true this not a double blind study, and our extended family could have some kind of defective gene that makes us all susceptible to the chamois, but I believe there is a lesson in design to be learned here, but I am not quite sure what it is. Anyone want to take a guess at what it is.


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Modern Love
(@modern-love)
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28/08/2007 10:22 am  

Perhaps.....
"Simplicity is an acquired taste. Mankind, left free, instinctively complicates life."
- Katharine Fullerton Gerould
....or.....
"In character, in manner, in style, in all things, the supreme excellence is simplicity."
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


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dcwilson
(@dcwilson)
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28/08/2007 11:11 am  

Fine quotes...
And I don't mean to contemplate my navel here, but exactly how do we define simplicity in this sort of thing? Number of moving parts? Ease of use?
In the squeegee vs. chamois example, I know I prefer the chamois on the shower door, because its easier and faster than the squeegee, which requires several long swipes and awkward adjustments with the hands to get all the corners. The chamois also feels better in my hand. I like chamois and having an excuse to use one.
But cleaning a car windshield, I'd rather have a squeegee with a long handle, so I can reach across the windshield and not have to touch the dirty water and schmutz coming off the windshield.
This designing is very tricky business.


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Modern Love
(@modern-love)
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28/08/2007 7:45 pm  

In context.
The chamois is an appropriate size for its environment I suppose.
Anything long and pokey in an exclosed space will feel awkward ...double-entendre unintended 🙂


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James Collins
(@james-collins)
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28/08/2007 11:16 pm  

One vote for the squeegee
Use it every day and have for years. A chamois would just get wet and gather dirt and dust, yuck.


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Robert Leach
(@robertleach1960yahoo-co-uk)
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29/08/2007 1:18 am  

I don't have a preference..
But what a great word
squeegee
🙂


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HP
 HP
(@hp)
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29/08/2007 6:05 am  

jeez what an uptight old bugg...
jeez what an uptight old bugger 🙂
If the muck gets thick enough its like having frosted glass and you can shower with the door open or you could just use an old pair of y-fronts like I do...would you rather have streaky glass or a festering piece of goat hyde hanging in the bathroom?
But seriously I think its all about the wrist action in a confined space, it just not comfortable.


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dcwilson
(@dcwilson)
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29/08/2007 7:21 am  

HP...
This is a tre chic chevre hide. 🙂
Agreed. Confined space equals hand job...ooops!...I mean a task done woithout an erect handle....oops...I mean...well, you know what I mean...what you said. 🙂


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dcwilson
(@dcwilson)
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29/08/2007 7:25 am  

robert1960...
Yes, squeegee may be the last truly delightful word added to the English language before it became moribund from technical jargon and mysogynious street vulgates.


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SDR
 SDR
(@sdr)
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29/08/2007 7:35 am  

. . .and the odd use
of "had" (done) in the place of "did" (you tell me what the terms are). . .
Different tools for different jobs -- even if they seem similar ?
"Chamois" is an unusual word in English, too -- sort of like "chaise longue" (NOT lounge). . .
F Ll Wright owned chamois underwear, according to a historian/tourist I know.


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Modern Love
(@modern-love)
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Joined: 12 years ago
Posts: 947
29/08/2007 7:37 am  

hand job
hahahaha!


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