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Old 8th Jun 2017, 2:32 pm   #21
Dave Moll
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

* technologies that were technically superior, but more costly than the inferior one that became the commercial success. I would include Betamax - and Philips' video offerings - in that category, having lost out to VHS.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 2:52 pm   #22
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Advanced Passenger Train. Designed expensively by a committee with lots of advanced technology (e.g. pre-worn wheels), but never carried a fare-paying passenger. Compare with High Speed Train: thought up by a few engineers unofficially, based on pushing existing technology just a little bit further to make a fast but flexible unit. Ran for decades, with engine upgrades from time to time.

Betamax was not a failure; it was just that in a two-horse race one had to come in second. The same might have happened with two rival CD standards, but fortunately Philips and Sony decided to cooperate.

Mazda octal base? Rimlock B8A base? (ducks and hides as 'incoming' expected!)
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 3:25 pm   #23
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

What about domestic sized rotary converters, designed to produce line voltage AC from batteries.
Expensive, made a noise, less efficient than static converters.

These had a brief spell of popularity around 1980? but never really caught on.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 3:28 pm   #24
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

As a non-material item, the Hoover free flights plan, ruined the company which then fell into the Candy maw.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 3:52 pm   #25
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I hope the museum is a success!
 
Old 8th Jun 2017, 3:59 pm   #26
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Electronic gizzmos costing ~£30 which clamp on to your car's fuel system to "condition" the fuel molecules and give you much improved performance and economy.

B
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:01 pm   #27
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Although i'm a fan the philips v2000 system must rate in there somewhere and their digital compact cassette format, video disc formats of all kinds apart from the compact disc type of course.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:10 pm   #28
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Wasn't there also another hi-definition type of DVD that wasn't Blueray?
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:11 pm   #29
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bazz4CQJ View Post
Electronic gizzmos costing ~£30 which clamp on to your car's fuel system to "condition" the fuel molecules and give you much improved performance and economy.
Oh, I thought magnets on fuel lines worked on Spitfires? Could that include magnetic water softeners too? Perhaps they are just limescale preventers.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:22 pm   #30
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ThePillenwerfer View Post
Wasn't there also another hi-definition type of DVD that wasn't Blueray?
Yes, I think it was simply called DVD-HD. Again, the loser in a two-horse race.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:24 pm   #31
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Quote:
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Wasn't there also another hi-definition type of DVD that wasn't Blueray?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/HD_DVD
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:29 pm   #32
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Sony Elcassette.

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Old 8th Jun 2017, 4:37 pm   #33
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Quote:
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Oh, I thought magnets on fuel lines worked on Spitfires? Could that include magnetic water softeners too? Perhaps they are just limescale preventers.
It's 'difficult' to see how it would work. A while ago, the "Fifth Gear" programme tested a number of them with a car on a rolling road - none worked. Re softeners/limescale devices, I suspect that there are some cheap products that don't work and some more expensive ones that influence limescale.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 5:12 pm   #34
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

The fabled ICL/BT/Sinclair One-Per-Desk computer.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 5:32 pm   #35
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

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Yes, I think it was simply called DVD-HD. Again, the loser in a two-horse race.
I have an HD-DVD Player along with over 100 HD-DVD Films , which I have picked up for almost pennies over the years.

The quality is actually fantastic in my opinion, and as good as Blu-ray.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 5:53 pm   #36
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

I only heard about this 'magnets around fuel lines of ww2 a/c thing' a few days ago. I immediately suspected it was a cheap way to prevent ferrous swarf reaching the carburettors rather than performance enhancing- but then again the tanks were generally Aluminium anyway, and any rivets associated with them probably Dural, so how would ferrous swarf get in there...? Interesting!

My contribution is a famous 'double failure'- the first half of it was procedural and the second half technical- and success ensued:

Swordfish managed to launch a torpedo attack on HMS Sheffield, which was thwarted only by faulty detonators. This is portrayed in 'Sink the Bismarck' which i believe to be accurate in respect of this incident at least.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 6:09 pm   #37
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Quote:
Originally Posted by electronicskip View Post
I have an HD-DVD Player along with over 100 HD-DVD Films , which I have picked up for almost pennies over the years.

The quality is actually fantastic in my opinion, and as good as Blu-ray.
I don't think there was anything wrong with the quality, just no room for two different technologies.

I have neither HD format, not found a use for one yet.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 6:15 pm   #38
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Quote:
I have neither HD format, not found a use for one yet.
I was 'treated' to a look/listen of a mates home cinema, he spoke about it so much I can't even remember the film title. A fail...
 
Old 8th Jun 2017, 6:51 pm   #39
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mole42uk View Post
The fabled ICL/BT/Sinclair One-Per-Desk computer.
And the Amstrad "Em@iler" phone-thingy.

I predict "Smartwatches" ri also be destined to make a future apearance in said museum.

Thinking of watches - the Sinclair "Black Watch" - whose designers seemed blissfully-unaware of the true amount of static the wearers of 1970s 'man-made fibre' clothes would build up and so did nothing to stop their invention resetting to 12:00 every time you took your Crimplene/Polyester jacket off.
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Old 8th Jun 2017, 7:16 pm   #40
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Default Re: Museum of failure.

I think any LED digital watch where a physical hand-operation was necessary to see the time would be a good contender. Technology for technology's sake.

And going back a bit, the 'Lorimer' automatic telephone dialling system didn't really make it, did it?
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