Objects in Flux - RMIT Research Repository - RMIT University

6.12 User-generated content
In the absence of official Apple documentation,
a large amount of information
published on iPod repair procedures
is user-generated. This information is a
Internet based and often takes the form
of how-to pages that detail a specific act
of repair such as opening the device or
reformatting the iPod’s hard drive. 19 iSOP
participated in this field of user-generated
content by developing a public blog site
which links to existing documentation
and gives detailed accounts of the various
repair processes undertaken during the project. 20 Participants in
the project and members of the public were able to follow the repair
process as it unfolded. In addition to this the blog remains online as a
public resource.
I found that many of the iPods submitted to iSOP could be fixed with
relatively simple procedures. Of the 16 iPods that were successfully
repaired, ten were restored to working condition through a simple
process of disassembly, cleaning and reassembly. The success of this
process prompted me to apply it as a matter of course regardless of the
iPod’s particular symptoms. In many cases the repair process succeeded
without diagnosis of a specific fault or any deep understanding
of the underlying cause. Aside from the technical challenge of opening
the iPod, this repair process required minimal skill or specialist knowledge
and, as such, it may be regarded as a highly suitable and effective
user repair option.
When this simple procedure failed to repair the iPod more detailed
research was generally required. In these circumstances the benefit of
having multiple identical devices on hand quickly became apparent.
By swapping components between a defective iPod and a functioning
device, faults could be quickly traced to specific parts. Once the faulty
part had been identified it was sometimes possible to repair the component
or replace it with a part from another iPod. 21 While individually,
participants may have been motivated by personal gain, simply
Stategies of Control and Tactics of Use
[Figure 6-14]
Fixing an iPod suffle with coloured
ribbon cable, 2006.
Image is author’s own.
19/ For more on how-to documents
see Chapter 5: Telling Stories.
20/ http://www.openobject.org/isop/
accessed 18 February 2011.
21/ The practice of canabalising one
object in order to repair another is
well established within the automo-
bile industry, both commercially in
the form of wreckers yards and on an
individual basis where farmers and
auto-enthusiasts may own multiple
versions of the same vehicle in vari-
ous states of disrepair.
123