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Comment by function_seven | Hacker News Reader

And requires me to remember to get up and hang it before a scheduled meeting. Or not hang it when someone calls me and a meeting erupts. And I need to remember to take it down after each call. (If I don’t, then it’s just up all the time and might be taken as seriously as a Prop 65 Warning.)

Automations are really nice for certain things!

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And I'm sure you've set up all the systems that make sure the complicated system is actually working and not dead weight or doing something unintended.

Versus, I dunno a door lock

sir, this is hacker news

obviously you need a remote motor that spins the sign to "do not disturb" when the meeting starts and then back around when it's over. and a sensor to verify it's in the correct orientation.

so you get the simplicity of the sign with the automation desired by the OP.

A webcam in the corridor that shows your office door from the outside, machine vision reads the image to know which orientation the sign is in. If a meeting begins and the sign is wrong, a little LED on the desk starts flashing red.

An alternative would be to spin the sign constantly around its center of mass while a meeting is in progress.

The meeting state coheres when the sign is observed.

nice! a clear application of quantum computing if i've ever heard one!

> Versus, I dunno a door lock

They just explained why a door lock has absolutely abysmal reliability.

"Making sure" the complicated system works significantly better than a door lock is actually really easy to do, because the door lock is so bad.

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