Stories of Technological Failure: PicturePhone, Dvorak keyboard & Betamax

[@nelumbonucifera7537]

Two years since the last video! Great to have you back.

[@alfredoestrada1242]

YES! this channel is back, thank you Mr. Bill, WELCOME BACK!, love this channel, you just made my entire week.

[@Sizifus]

Awesome, Bill is back!

[@ummtone]

Your back!!! Looking forward to watching all these videos!

[@jason3fc]

Would love to see more of this series. I loved it! Surely there have to be several other technologies that failed like this. Great series.

[@K25tm]

Good to have you back, really enjoy your videos.

[@igorilyasov2057]

Welcome BACK, Mr. Hammack! KZbinrs missed you! I missed you. 😊

[@kuhmpashun]

Really glad to see you posting videos again. This series seems very interesting. Great idea!

[@boris4231]

I was so happy when i saw these new videos on your channel!!!

[@tigercake558]

WOOP! Welcome back Bill, good to have you back! Just made my week :)

[@DaScribbler]

Engineerguy is back! Ah! I'm excited.

[@BenStarling]

These are just the sort videos we've been waiting for. Many thanks!

[@rustbucket94]

Glad to have you back Bill!

[@infiltrator7777]

The Commodore Amiga would have been on this list as well. Way ahead of its time!

[@oozekip]

Joe Smith XboxAhoy has a fantastic video on the Amiga's failure called 'Doomed: The Embers of Amiga FPS' if you're still interested. It does focus on the video game (primarily FPS) side of why the Amiga failed, but it's still a very good video.

[@infiltrator7777]

***** Thanks for the info! Will check it out now. Cheers!

[@Angie2343]

And EPCOT too!

[@KidFury27]

Happy to see you back at it Bill. Looking forward to many more new videos!

[@ikemkrueger]

I think this videos are a good way to teach people how to be successful as an engineer. I wanna see this serie continue.

[@AbrarShaikh2741]

Wow, you are back. Dare you go back this time. I had to watch your old videos over and over again. Lol

[@WenzelCORP]

YOU'RE AWESOME! It's good to see you again making videos!

[@KustomFu]

wow 4 videos in 1 day!

[@LukeBeacon]

And then no more for another 3 years

[@infiltrator7777]

Yeah Bill is back! I was starting to think this channel was closed.

[@seanmolincreative]

SO glad you're back, bill!

[@gedzior84]

It's so good to see you back! Hope you'll keep on posting new videos :)

[@jugermaut]

You're back!! This made my day lol.

[@Vlad88667]

You're back?!?!?! Best news of the week!

[@roberthorn9897]

Wow - very good - just discovered your videos. Well done! Love the wide angle view - draws you in. Sending you much success!

[@ShaunDreclin]

Wow I totally forgot about this channel! Great to see more videos from you :D

[@AlbbiMe]

I'm really excited that you're doing more videos!

[@mmd90]

Welcome back! hope to see more of your awesome videos!

[@yepyep87]

Thank god!! You're back!! :D I really missed your amassing videos!! Btw - buy the book, i learned a lot from it.

[@eFlare]

Great to see new videos, Bill!

[@abdelhakimmouslih8468]

Good to see you back!

[@nonamedpleb]

this is so great..engineerguys vids are one of my favorites and now hes back!

[@alessandrore6905]

It's great to see you again! :D

[@RealationGames]

Very interesting topic! Thanks for making these videos.

[@TestMyVidsOut]

Yes! Thanks for returning!

[@MRguywithlazereyes]

Yesssss, your back!!! Finally!!

[@Asdayasman]

I don't remember subscribing to this guy, but I'm glad I did. Very enjoyable.

[@pnogas]

Just watched all 3 of these. They were great. I wish my school did more to teach me this type of wisdom.

[@talonfortytwo2719]

I love your stuff. I wish you did longer videos.

[@SigbinNinja]

Glad you're back! :D

[@GroovingPict]

It's cool that you are able to take the time to make these videos even though you must be very busy with the filming of the new Star Wars movie. Good on you Mr Hamill

[@vanmaren962]

So so so so so so so happy you have new videos!!!!!!! n_n

[@MallocArray]

Glad you are back!

[@theshonen8899]

I loved these videos, keep em up!

[@blahking]

You're back!!

[@hfd484]

YOU'RE BACK!!!!!! YEAH SCIENCE!!!!!!

[@ChipGuy]

Thanks for 4 fantastic videos !

[@yiting7456]

How is it that such good quality videos were made 7 years ago? 😱

[@SLIPOwnage]

YES! Welcome back.

[@JBMoevies]

Yes, he's back!

[@botar99]

I love these videos so so much!!

[@Remuji]

This is quite the comeback.

[@HaouasLeDocteur]

PLEASE NEVER LEAVE AGAIN

[@sameyers2670]

Thank you for making such interesting videos

[@1nitniuq]

He's back.

[@SamuraiM0]

Welcome back.

[@blanktester]

You could easily do a video on the 3DO along the same lines as the PicturePhone, Betamax, and Dvorak keyboard videos. A lot of the 3DO's features were way ahead of the times, but no one bought one so it never went anywhere. The Dreamcast had a lot of interesting features too, but the 3DO is really a tragedy in the videogame console world.

[@Lazyguy22]

The '59 Edsel was a thing of beauty.

[@jayyoutube8790]

I think it's a great looking car too..

[@m0ther_bra1ned12]

It is a nice looking car.

[@hushaohan]

You're back!

[@ericsorensen1552]

Please do more of these

[@seventeesrock]

You back! Aligato-gozaimasu!

[@SilverMiraii]

it's arigatou gozaimasu what aligator are u talking about

[@seventeesrock]

That's "THANK YOU" in japanese.

[@SilverMiraii]

Yes, I speak japanese, and I just corrected your spelling :) どいたしまして

[@seventeesrock]

Oh, thx.

[@flamin-yawn]

Will you ever do an episode on the Ford Edsel?

[@iamfuturetrunks]

So what about the car? Why did that fail? :(

[@D8W2P4]

In one world it was delicate.

[@jimshulman9221]

For a wide variety of reasons, most unrelated to technology. First, Robert McNamara wanted it to fail, since it would steal sales from the Ford division (Edsel was part of the separate MEL, Mercury Edsel Lincoln division). He is reported to have said as much to Fax Cone, head of Foote Cone Belding, a leading ad agency of the time. Second, it was introduced in time for the 1958 recession, which hurt auto sales among the big three--much like Cadillac launching its V-16 cars in time for the Great Depression. Third, its varying sizes were confusing--was it a mid size car, or a big car? Fourth, it was conceived in the early to mid 1950s, a very different market. Auto sales were booming in the 1954-56 period, so adding another division might have made sense. By the introduction of the Edsel the mid-50s auto market had cooled considerably. Additionally, in 1956 Ford went public, and was forced to consider shareholder profits as a NYSE company, rather than family firm. The Edsel project was considered an extravagance by the penny-pinching McNamara. Fifth, smaller cars were gaining favor among the public--the rising tide of small car imports, especially Volkswagen, and the popularity of American Motors' Ramblers. The Edsel was a new barge among smaller craft. Sixth, quality control was inferior. To save money Ford tacked the Edsel onto existing Ford production schedules. That didn't exactly endear it to auto workers. Famously, when Henry Ford II escorted singer Rosemary Clooney to her new Edsel (Clooney was a star of "The Edsel Show", a CBS variety special to introduce the car.) the door handle came off in her hand. She turned to Ford and said, "Mr. Ford, about your car..." The new Teletouch automatic transmission was plagued with solenoid problems, which caused the car to slip out of gear. Styling wasn't really that much uglier than many other cars' of the era (consider the all-new '58 Lincoln, with a face only a mother could love.) It was also a time where the Big Three had more than their share of quality control bombs: Chrysler's Electro-Jector fuel injection system (which had to be recalled), GM's air suspension (which was usually replaced with traditional coil suspension), and GM's famed Tri-carb set-up, which was prone to fires. For a wonderful assessment of what ailed the mighty US Auto Makers of the era, find a copy of John Keats' "The Insolent Chariots".

[@greggeshelman7106]

How about the Pepperoni Pizza Principle? Is Pepperoni nearly always on a sale or special because it's the most popular, or is it the most popular because it's nearly always on a sale or special? Easy enough to prove/disprove. Have several pizza restaurants select another topping to always have at a special price while making pepperoni cost the same as the others. At the end of the test period, see how the pricing change has affected sales of both toppings. Then after going back to business as usual with flogging pepperoni at the low price, see how much the trends change back over the same time. This also goes for products that have been discontinued due to low sales, because stores refuse to stock the product. For example, Shasta quit making strawberry soda. It was nearly impossible to find, I'd always ask managers "Why don't you have any strawberry Shasta?" "Because it doesn't sell well." "Well, you can't sell it if you never have any!" Pepperoni Pizza Principle corollary. What you don't sell, you can't sell. Advertising. If you fail to tell people continuously that you have this thing for sale, they will forget about it and your sales and income will drop. Many companies that *didn't* go out of business in the Great Depression survived because they did not cut their budgets for advertising. So many companies had gone under that people assumed once they stopped seeing ads in newspapers and stopped hearing ads on radio, the company was gone. Thus they quit looking for those products in stores or quit mailing in orders. Companies that kept shouting "WE ARE STILL HERE!" got attention and tended to keep enough sales volume to stay in business. What you don't tell, won't sell.

[@bl4xb0x1]

The way these are shot reminds me of Good Eats

[@supcomFAN]

Quality stuff as always :)

[@edgarmark909]

Long time no see!

[@PranavJindal999]

fuck yeah!! \m/ EngineerGuy is back.

[@WATTHEUHK]

OMG YOU'RE BACK!!!!!

[@monsieurmiaow]

He is back

[@symbolxchannel]

I love these videos! :D

[@apollothemanboy]

WELCOME BACK!

[@DarkMessiah6]

YAAAY ENGINEERGUY!!! WE MISSED YOU :D

[@rodier_ratafakus]

Can we get part about Edsel ?

[@xnamkcor]

Wasn't the Edsel in Maniac Mansion?

[@LifeOfPabs]

YES!!! new videos!!

[@endingalaporte]

very clear, agréable à écouter

[@oafkad]

I watched these in reverse and find myself getting excited about Videos I already watched :p.

[@azntranc3951]

Bill is back! :)

[@Toxicbell]

Please, sir. More Engineering Failures.

[@Treviath]

I would suggest to post these videos with slight intervals. 4 videos instantly can be overwhelming to some people

[@engineerguyvideo]

We debated and debated -- we always do -- but this was a series where the three videos together illuminate some aspects of technological failure in the marketplace -- a fascinating subject to me.

[@xnamkcor]

I'm subscribbed to many channels and at least one with multiple simultaneous periodical content. 4 quick videos isn't overwhelming. If he had posted 4 45 minute to 2 hour videos, like most of the podcasts I watch, then that would be overwhelming. I would still watch and enjoy them no matter their schedule, though.

[@SK8terGuy19]

***** Bill, please, please tell me you're actually back for good?

[@xnamkcor]

SK8terGuy19 He never left. He just took a nap.

[@Drchainsaw77]

Great videos ..but that's not a "Ford Edsel" any more than it's a "Ford Lincoln." Edsel was its own make, like Dodge or Buick or Mercury, which had its own model names: Citation, Ranger, Bermuda, and a handful of others.

[@drethedog]

Give this guy a TV show already....

[@AyStar]

I really wish the url in the description still worked. Looks like it's gone now. :(

[@engineerguyvideo]

What did it point to?

[@AyStar]

@@engineerguyvideo the link in the description leads to a missing error 404 page on your site. Maybe the page is bugged, but I was hoping to check it out.

[@engineerguyvideo]

Do you need a transcript?

[@AyStar]

​@@engineerguyvideo I assumed the URL led to more information about each of the products in the video. I guess?

[@engineerguyvideo]

Pretty sure it was transcripts

[@TheCodeTinkerer]

You're way of presentation has some David Attenborough over it :D

[@oliviernadeau5608]

very good videos ! but it would have been better if it was about something a little more current

[@pummisher1186]

With video game consoles, I bought a Dreamcast, Gamecube and a Wii U. All considered a failure and yet have some very fun games. With the Wii U, Nintendo really didn't need that giant tablet controller. It should have shipped separately and let the market decide. Beyond that, the games I bought are fun. Would have really liked it if it could play Gamecube games. I think it's more a marketing decision and less of a technological issue.

[@Zerepzerreitug]

yay, more videos :D

[@wade42]

More EngineerGuy? Yes, please.

[@josecvelez]

WELCOME BACKK!!!!!

[@poseidonc1259]

“But the important lesson is: To dislodge an existing technology it requires a significant change in performance and likely an increase in functionality.” *THE METRIC SYSTEM HAS ENTERED THE CHAT*

[@hyundkim199]

i want more of these!

[@Ponlets]

but i wanna know about Edsl ford car and why it faild

[@Malsherz]

We actually have an Edsel parked in the driveway.

[@thepie8u]

your vids are great engi guy!

[@PersonaRandomNumbers]

He's aliiiiive!

[@Scorpionwacom]

I have to admit, Bill is an exceptionally well-educated person.

[@stephaniepajares4602]

I Love this!!!! :)

[@GodMr1]

He is ALIVE!?!? aaaaaaaaaaeeeeee

[@jamescrook99]

UR BACK !!! YER !!!"