Talk:Law of the instrument/Archives/2012

Just like
Godwin's law another concept that is utter nonsense without any relation to reality. article should be deleted. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.47.162.18 (talk) 13:41, 16 July 2012 (UTC)

Verbose?
How verbose do you have to be?!?

Golden Irony
A golden hammer is ironic because such a hammer wouldn't work any better than an iron one.--Aufidius 23:18, 23 July 2005 (UTC)


 * Actually it's even more ironic since a golden hammer would work worse than an iron or steel one, since gold is a softer metal. Kode 20:49, 10 January 2006 (UTC)


 * Actually it does exists lead hammers with a specific purpose. So I dont see the iron-y. :) Why gold is not used one can figure easely. - A. Svensson


 * "as gold is a relatively soft and heavy metal" makes no sense - softness can be desirable, and heaviness usually is, in a hammer material. I think it's more important that gold is no better than cheaper materials like lead.  It's not "useless". 129.97.79.144 20:26, 26 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Gold is not just "relatively soft": it's possibly the most malluable metal in existance. You don't want to put dents in your hammer ever time you swing it; it will deform so quickly as to rapidly become useless. It's worse than steel by orders of magnitude; and costs orders of maginitude more money. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.254.142.195 (talk) 19:03, 14 November 2007 (UTC)

I think 'golden hammer' is a play on the idea of the 'golden rule' in which sense 'golden' doesn't literally mean made of gold; it is a figurative use which suggests wide or complete application. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.15.66.17 (talk) 07:30, 5 March 2010 (UTC)

Silver Bullet
Is it possible the phrase is also a pun on "silver bullet"? David McCabe 07:54, 3 June 2006 (UTC)

Microsoft?
Does the link to Microsoft really belong here, if there is a good reason it needs some sort of explanation. Hydraton31 20:31, 28 June 2006 (UTC)
 * I understand the reference of a link to M$, even if it is not really NPOV. It certainly is true. (before this starts an OS war, I am on a Windows system now, and only own windows systems.)

Hawley's Corollary
i just came across "hawley's corollary to maslow's law of the instrument." it says: "when you're a hammer, everything looks like a thumb." it's kind of cute and probably has relevance because it is showing a use of the law of the instrument in popular culture. i haven't been able to find a definitive reference for hawley's corollary, but if someone else finds a different reference to a different mutation of maslow's law, perhaps the thing to do would be to refactor the article to highlight the ubiquity of the law demonstrated by it's frequent modification.

OhMeadhbh (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 13:39, 23 August 2010 (UTC).

Related page in wiktionary
https://secure.wikimedia.org/wiktionary/en/wiki/if_all_you_have_is_a_hammer,_everything_looks_like_a_nail

It's be wise to edit both together, for consistency. 66.68.45.15 (talk) 05:55, 1 September 2011 (UTC)