Minor things that bother you

[1995hoo]

I use the timer on the microwave even when I'm not using the microwave, but my mom isn't the sort to do that type of thing simply because she's in her 80s and it's not how she did things for most of her life.

I use the microwave's timer when cooking in the conventional oven, even though our stove/oven has a timer of its own.  This baffles my wife.

....

Same here. It absolutely confounds my wife and I have to tell her to leave things alone when I'm the person who set the timer. The other thing that will happen is that if I'm using the microwave's timer and I'm not using the microwave, she will sometimes put something in the microwave and then go to hit the "Add 30 sec" button, which of course screws up my timer unless I notice what she's about to do and yell at her not to.

She doesn't understand why I don't use the timer on the oven even though I've explained that I often set the timer for less time than the recipe specifies so that I can check to see whether something is done sooner. The meatloaf recipe we use, for example, says to bake for 75 minutes, but I've found it's usually done after 50 or 55 minutes. So I don't want to use the oven timer because it automatically turns itself off when it reaches the designated time, but if I set it for less than the recipe says, the food might not be ready and I don't want the oven to turn itself off.

Because of all that, lately I've often started using the timer on my Apple Watch instead. One advantage is that because it moves around with me, it's easier to hear if I'm on the other side of the room near the TV or I go outside to turn something on the grill or whatever.

[kphoger]

My wife sometimes uses the oven's built-in kitchen timer for something other than cooking.  This is because, unlike the microwave's built-in kitchen timer, it keeps beeping (with pauses) until you cancel it.  That way, if she's a couple of rooms away or whatever and doesn't hear it at first, then it doesn't go completely unnoticed.

[kphoger]

Silly language like this:

I just opened some junk mail at work, and it include this vomit-inducing phrase.

"I am reaching out to you because we are currently seeking a hungry, growth-oriented owner of a leading commercial security systems integrator generating >$5M of annual revenue to bend the universe with."

wtf?  Bend the universe?  Give me a break...

[Scott5114]

He'd hate ours. Ours doesn't have buttons to type in the time (other than the "Add 30 sec" button). Instead, you turn a dial.

That's like our toaster oven.  Do you have to turn it past 20 just to cook something for 3 minutes, though?

*sigh*  That's another thing that bothers me...

This is because it's mechanical—you are literally winding it up like a grandfather clock!

[wxfree]

I'm annoyed when a microwave makes you press the "Time Cook" button to enter a specific time. Our current and previous microwave allow you to enter a custom time my just selecting the numbers and clicking "Start". There's also a 1 minute button as well.

I'm not annoyed either way.  I just wish all microwaves were the same way.  When I go to use the microwave at a friend's house, I can never remember if I need to hunt for that button first or just start punching numbers.

If I want to pop something in for 50 seconds, but there's a TIME COOK button that I just haven't noticed yet, then, as soon as I hit the 5, there's a good chance it'll start going for 5 minutes right away.

But if I assume there's a TIME COOK button but there isn't one, then there's a good chance I'll spend half a minute staring at all the buttons for no good reason.

And maybe there is one, but it's called something ambiguous like TIME, but I assume that's for setting the clock...

All microwave ovens get a number pad, 1 through 0.  (I don't know why they're that way.  My computer number pad goes 0 through 9, which makes sense.  Microwave numbers are set like the old rotary telephones, putting the zero on the high end instead of where it belongs.)  They also get keys for "30 seconds" "1 minute" "2 minutes" and "5 minutes."  Those add together.  If you push "2 minutes" twice it goes up to four minutes.  Maybe to make it easier for stupid people, you have to push "Start" before it starts.  That way you can make sure you added up the time correctly if you're not smart enough to add or to just punch in the numbers.  Or, to reduce the key activations, it waits two or three seconds, displaying the total time you've entered, and then starts if you don't hit "Cancel" first.  Throw in some power settings and you have a nice keypad.

[1995hoo]

....

All microwave ovens get a number pad, 1 through 0. ... They also get keys for "30 seconds" "1 minute" "2 minutes" and "5 minutes." ....

Whatever gave you the idea that "all" microwaves are like that? Ours is pretty much like the one shown below.

[kphoger]

Whatever gave you the idea that "all" microwaves are like that?

OK, Mister Literal.  It's his idea of how they all should be, not his idea of how they all actually are.

[1995hoo]

Whatever gave you the idea that "all" microwaves are like that?

OK, Mister Literal.  It's his idea of how they all should be, not his idea of how they all actually are.

I didn't interpret it as you have. He said "I don't know why they're that way," which said to me that he was making what he considered a statement of fact.

[kphoger]

I didn't interpret it as you have. He said "I don't know why they're that way," which said to me that he was making what he considered a statement of fact.

That would be a parenthetical aside, in which it is his statement of fact that microwaves with a keypad go 1 through 0, rather than 0 through 9.

[kphoger]

(I don't know why they're that way.  My computer number pad goes 0 through 9, which makes sense.  Microwave numbers are set like the old rotary telephones, putting the zero on the high end instead of where it belongs.)

The keypads on my non-rotary desk phone and non-rotary cell phone both put 0 after 9.  I can't think of any reason why a microwave should be more like a calculator than a telephone.

[vdeane]

The NPS closed a road through the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area three years ago.  Normally I wouldn't care, but it got added to Travel Mapping and I have everything except the NPS roads clinched in that part of New Jersey.  I thought a roadmeet being planned in NJ this year could be the perfect opportunity to clinch these (among a few other things), but nope, guess not.  They should either fix the road so that it can be clinched or close it permanently so that it can be removed from TM.

Especially annoying as I rarely have reason to clinch things in that area.  I have most everything I want, so the urge is to either clinch things elsewhere or just make time passing through the state on the interstates.

[JayhawkCO]

The NPS closed a road through the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area three years ago.  Normally I wouldn't care, but it got added to Travel Mapping and I have everything except the NPS roads clinched in that part of New Jersey.  I thought a roadmeet being planned in NJ this year could be the perfect opportunity to clinch these (among a few other things), but nope, guess not.  They should either fix the road so that it can be clinched or close it permanently so that it can be removed from TM.

Especially annoying as I rarely have reason to clinch things in that area.  I have most everything I want, so the urge is to either clinch things elsewhere or just make time passing through the state on the interstates.

How long is the road? Hikeable?

[Max Rockatansky]

The NPS closed a road through the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area three years ago.  Normally I wouldn't care, but it got added to Travel Mapping and I have everything except the NPS roads clinched in that part of New Jersey.  I thought a roadmeet being planned in NJ this year could be the perfect opportunity to clinch these (among a few other things), but nope, guess not.  They should either fix the road so that it can be clinched or close it permanently so that it can be removed from TM.

Especially annoying as I rarely have reason to clinch things in that area.  I have most everything I want, so the urge is to either clinch things elsewhere or just make time passing through the state on the interstates.

How long is the road? Hikeable?

Or bikeable?  I had to hike long closed Foresta Road along the western boundary of Yosemite National Park a couple years ago to get that road in.  In theory I could have taken a bike on it, but the uphill climb was massive.  Similarly, I just hiked the OHV segment of Hites Cove Road since I don't have a vehicle capable of getting down a sustained two mile long 15-20% descent.

[wxfree]

(I don't know why they're that way.  My computer number pad goes 0 through 9, which makes sense.  Microwave numbers are set like the old rotary telephones, putting the zero on the high end instead of where it belongs.)

The keypads on my non-rotary desk phone and non-rotary cell phone both put 0 after 9.  I can't think of any reason why a microwave should be more like a calculator than a telephone.

I used the rotary imagery to make it clear what I mean about the 0 being on the wrong end.  With buttons, it makes some sense to put the extra keys beside the 0, since they have to go somewhere, and it's more pleasing to see a 3 by 3 block numbered 1 through 9 than to have it 0 through 8 with 9 below it.  I understand it, but that doesn't mean I like it.  With a dial it's obviously wrong.  On a computer keyboard, the strip of numbers at the top has the 0 last, but I don't use it to type more than one number because it's a pain.

This makes me wonder about ATMs and card machines in stores.  Are they all the same?  Do the numbers go up or down?  Is the zero first or last?  I don't remember.  I know I punched in my PIN wrong once because I was entering it the way I would on a different pad.  I'll need to start remembering how those keys are arranged.

[kkt]

"per say"

"ect."

"for all intensive purposes"

I assume, perhaps too charitably, that people are using speech to text.

[kkt]

Napoleon ice cream

He really invaded Russia in order to get a secure supply of ice for France in the summer.

[kphoger]

I used the rotary imagery to make it clear what I mean about the 0 being on the wrong end.

On rotary phones, zero does belong after nine, because it's actually ten pulses.

On a computer keyboard, the strip of numbers at the top has the 0 last

Typewriters used to have only 2 through 8, because people could type l or I instead of 1, and o or O instead of 0.  Then, later, a 0 key was added.  Having it go 234567890 made more sense than having it go 023456789.  It wasn't until even later that a 1 key was added.

With buttons, it makes some sense to put the extra keys beside the 0, since they have to go somewhere, and it's more pleasing to see a 3 by 3 block numbered 1 through 9 than to have it 0 through 8 with 9 below it.

*shrug*

[Scott5114]

(I don't know why they're that way.  My computer number pad goes 0 through 9, which makes sense.  Microwave numbers are set like the old rotary telephones, putting the zero on the high end instead of where it belongs.)

The keypads on my non-rotary desk phone and non-rotary cell phone both put 0 after 9.  I can't think of any reason why a microwave should be more like a calculator than a telephone.

If the microwave is mounted above the range, it would make sense to have the frequently used 0-1-2-3 buttons lower and more easily reached than the infrequently used 7-8-9 buttons.

[hbelkins]

They should either fix the road so that it can be clinched or close it permanently so that it can be removed from TM.

The NPS -- or any other governmental administrative body -- has zero interest in clinching roads or Travel Mapping. Why should they?

[Scott5114]

They should either fix the road so that it can be clinched or close it permanently so that it can be removed from TM.

The NPS -- or any other governmental administrative body -- has zero interest in clinching roads or Travel Mapping. Why should they?

Because if they don't, we'll have to elect Jim president so he can fix it himself, and then who will do the site updates every night?

[Max Rockatansky]

Some of you folks are a little too beholden to only being interested in driving only what is on Travel Maps. 

[kphoger]

If the microwave is mounted above the range, it would make sense to have the frequently used 0-1-2-3 buttons lower and more easily reached than the infrequently used 7-8-9 buttons.

My microwave is not mounted above the range.  Since this picture was taken, we've moved it to the top of the mini-fridge—which is even lower than our already-lower-than-most countertop—with the toaster oven stacked on top of the microwave.

I'm about 6'1" tall.  I'd rather have the most-used buttons at the top.

[Scott5114]

I'm about 6'1" tall.  I'd rather have the most-used buttons at the top.

And if you were 4'11" you probably wouldn't.

In general it's easier for tall people to reach down to things slightly too low than for short people to reach up to things slightly too high.

[kphoger]

And if you were 4'11" you probably wouldn't.

In general it's easier for tall people to reach down to things slightly too low than for short people to reach up to things slightly too high.

Oh, yeah?  Well...  If...  Umm...

OK, I've got nothing.

But you're still wrong.  Just because.  So there.

~)-:

[Scott5114]

~)-:

I assume this is the emoji for "unhappily eating ramen made in a slightly-too-tall microwave".