Things You Never Look At
Curated by Claude · 12 videos · 2 hr 35 min
A relaxed list for a slow afternoon, made from the design explainers HN links whenever someone says 'there is a great video about this'. It starts with short pieces on sound and doors, moves to manufactured objects and the appliances that were better in the past, and widens out to design failures that cost lives or miss their users. It ends with Saul Bass pitching a logo, which HN holds up as how to present design.
Play all on YouTube- 11:45
Why Do Reversing Trucks Not Beep Any More?
1.6M views • 12 years agoTom ScottTom Scott stands by a construction site and explains why reversing vehicles now use a white-noise hiss instead of beeping. The sound is easier to locate directionally and less annoying to neighbours.A one-minute opener on why backup alarms switched to white noise: it is easier to tell where the sound comes from.
- 25:32
It's not you. Bad doors are everywhere.
10.6M views • 10 years agoVoxVox's Joe Posner, with help from 99% Invisible, explains why bad doors are everywhere. It covers Don Norman's long-running complaint about doors and the idea that good design should not need instructions.The short, canonical explainer of the Norman door, which introduces the idea of affordances that the rest of the list relies on.
- 34:26
British Plugs Are Better Than All Other Plugs, And Here's Why
7.6M views • 12 years agoTom ScottTom Scott explains the design of the British BS 1363 plug and socket, including fuses, shutters and safety features, and why he thinks it beats other plugs.The video HN posts every time plugs come up: fuses, shutters, and safety built into the shape.
- 411:39
The Ingenious Design of the Aluminum Beverage Can
19.5M views • 11 years agoengineerguyBill Hammack of Engineer Guy explains the engineering behind the aluminum beverage can: why it is cylindrical, how it is manufactured, why it narrows at the top, the double seam, and how the pull tab works.Bill Hammack explains why a can is shaped the way it is, HN's standard example of a well-designed mass-produced object.
- 5
14:21The Antique Microwave Oven that's Better than Yours
2.7M views • 5 years agoTechnology ConnectionsTechnology Connections examines an old feature-rich microwave and shows how it uses a humidity or steam sensor and lookup data to cook food well, arguing it beats many modern ones.An old microwave with a steam sensor, cited in many HN threads as proof that older appliances could be smarter.
- 6
11:02How to design an actually good toaster with lessons from the 1940's
851K views • 6 years agoTechnology ConnectionsTechnology Connections praises a 1940s-50s Sunbeam toaster and explains what makes a toaster well designed, drawing on a vintage Sunbeam video.More appliance nostalgia: why a 1940s Sunbeam toaster still sets the standard.
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11:22Thomas Thwaites: How I built a toaster -- from scratch
282K views • 15 years agoTEDDesigner Thomas Thwaites describes his attempt to build a toaster from scratch, from mining ore and deriving plastic from oil. It is a short TED talk on how much civilization a simple object depends on.Paired with the previous video: building one cheap toaster from ore and oil shows how much industry a simple object depends on.
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13:55Segmented Displays
7.2M views • 4 years agoPosyPosy explores segmented displays, from the seven-segment display to alternative designs with fewer or more segments, with patents and history.A calm tour of seven-segment displays and stranger alternatives that only appear in old patents.
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8:21The Grille Trend that Kills 509 People per Year
1.3M views • 2 years agoFortNineFortNine looks at the data on why newer pickup trucks with tall, blunt grilles kill so many pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists. It argues that lowering hood height would substantially cut fatalities.The tone gets serious: a styling trend, tall truck hoods, tied directly to pedestrian deaths.
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27:36Why Western Designs Fail in Developing Countries
1.8M views • 2 years agoDesign TheoryA design essay on why products designed in Western contexts often fail when deployed in developing countries. It covers expert blindness and cultural assumptions, with examples such as malaria nets and the One Laptop Per Child project.Widens the frame to expert blindness, meaning designs that only work in the culture they were made for.
- 11
18:19Why city flags may be the worst-designed thing you've never noticed | Roman Mars
5.2M views • 11 years agoTEDRoman Mars gives a funny TED talk on vexillology, laying out five basic principles of good flag design and why many city flags fail them.Roman Mars's five rules for flags, which HN reuses for logos and branding.
- 12
27:00AT&T Archives: Saul Bass Pitch Video for Bell System Logo Redesign
417K views • 14 years agoAT&T Tech ChannelThe 1969 pitch film in which Saul Bass presents the Bell System logo redesign to AT&T, part of the largest corporate re-identity program in U.S. history.It ends with the 1969 pitch film HN considers a masterclass in explaining and selling a design.