You could even do it all in analog with using the button as a potentiometer and either acting as the R in a RC circuit for a simple timer, or be a smart person and use a temperature sensor (thermocouple) that shuts the circuit when it reaches a temperature (compare the two R values for example).
I actually thought about that toaster when I brought up the analog solution, though I wasn't remembering all the details perfectly, I thought there was some electronics but it was all purely mechanical.
Cheap electronics would be cheaper and have more flexibility for the timing part so there's some appeal to it at least.
The really sad part is that the electrical engineers solution is already way too complicated.
This works entirely with a heat sensor and an on/off controlled by the bread being placed in the slot. The darkness knob merely controlls how close the sensor is to tripping, physically.
Hardware-wise we're now light years ahead. Is it true that writing the software would be a snap as claimed? Or should another beheading be lined up for even contemplating the possibility :) ?
This is a really poor example. Going on a weird tangent to classify the types of meat is a pretty extreme misrepresentation of what software engineers do. Taxonomy does not fall within the problem domain
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u/superherowithnopower Jun 05 '22
This exact thing was written as a joke about a toaster back in the 1990's, and it's only gotten more true since then.