Owner's Manifesto

Above via: http://flailings.blogspot.com/

If you can't open it, you don't own it: a Maker's Bill of Rights to accessible, extensive, and repairable hardware.
By Mister Jalopy (he rocks!)

• Meaningful and specific parts lists shall be included.Cases shall be easy to open.


• Batteries should be replaceable.


• Special tools are allowed only for darn good reasons.


• Profiting by selling expensive special tools is wrong and not making special tools available is even worse.


• Torx is OK; tamperproof is rarely OK.


• Components, not entire sub-assemblies, shall be replaceable.


• Consumables, like fuses and filters, shall be easy to access.


• Circuit boards shall be commented.


• Power from USB is good; power from proprietary power adapters is bad.


• Standard connecters shall have pinouts defined.


• If it snaps shut, it shall snap open.


• Screws better than glues.


• Docs and drivers shall have permalinks and shall reside for all perpetuity at archive.org.


• Ease of repair shall be a design ideal, not an afterthought.


• Metric or standard, not both.


• Schematics shall be included.

Mr. Jalopy used to post more often, go to the beginning of his archives and work forward to the present, it's so worth it! http://hooptyrides.blogspot.com/2004_08_01_archive.html

See his garage at http://eecue.com/log_archive/eecue-log-781-Mister_Jalopy___Dorkbot_Socal_Shop_Tour.html

Via: http://www.makezine.com/04/ownyourown/