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I had a smartphone that at some point started to randomly create touch events. Kind of like if you put it in your pocket while the screen is unlocked.

I don't remember any physical light switch that ever switch on or off by itself.

In an aircraft flying through turbulences I'd feel a lot more comfortable knowing that all switches are pyhsical. Try to use your smartphone while jogging...



Comparing a light switch to the switches and dials found in an aircraft is a it like comparing a light switch to a keyboard key.

Yeah they’re both switches, but size is incredibly important, and small mechanical devices are finicky and don’t produce nice clean digital output (that’s a lie that electronic engineers tell software engineers to keep things simple).

So yeah I’m sure you’ve never seen a light switch fail, but I bet you’ve seen a keyboard fail (especially if you’ve spent any time around a recent MacBook).

But I do agree with your point on using a touchscreen in turbulence. A counter point is that there are probably hundreds of controls or settings on a plane that you never touch during turbulence, possibly that you never touch in flight (like telling the flight computer how much cargo you’re carrying). Stuff like that is ideal for a touchscreen.




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