Tools

[gfish]

Random rantlet: Who started the whole 'it's a poor craftsperson that blames their tools' thing? No one who has ever made something by hand, I bet. I cringe every time I hear it used. Who is willing to pay the most for good tools, and who is most obsessed with taking good care of them? The best craftspeople, of course. Good tools matter. There is a lot that you simply can't do without high quality, well-maintained tools.

Comments

Depends on how you look at it

[avicado.livejournal.com]

It's a poor (as in, "not wealthy") craftsperson that blames their tools.

They can't afford good tools, so when said tools break or fail in the process of creating something, of course they're going to blame them! &;)

Or you could look at it another way. A mark of a bad craftsperson is sloppiness. Thus, they neglect taking proper care of their tools. The tools break, and they blame the tools instead of themselves.

Even if the tools were actually flawed or at fault, shouldn't a good craftsperson detect that and not buy them in the first place?

[sistawendy.livejournal.com]

There is a lot that you simply can't do without high quality, well-maintained tools.

That's why my sewing machine is a Pfaff.

[airlinepilot.livejournal.com]

It takes a good craftsman / musician / artist to use a good tool / instrument properly.

It'd be ludicrous for me to take a Stradivarius and blame my poor performance on the violin, since I can't play ANY violin.

OTOH, a truly excellent craftsman / musician can make magic with a sub-par tool / instrument.

[adularia.livejournal.com]

It's a poor craftsperson that blames their tools when it's not the tool's fault? I think all it means is that one should consider the defects in one's technique at least as critically as they examine their tools.

I took you seriously (http://adularia.livejournal.com/306391.html?nc=5). /lovingly pets her gen-u-ine SLT

[randomdreams.livejournal.com]

I think another way of considering this would be that a really good craftsman can often do excellent work even with lousy equipment. ("Lance could win the Tour on a tricycle.") As such, problems with the work tend to indicate the worker rather than the equipment being the problem. This isn't always the case, obviously, but I think it's part of where that phrase came from.

[irgth.livejournal.com]

http://web.mac.com/aaronandpatty/iWeb/What%20the%20Duck/Images/WTD95.gif

Of course, if you do have good tools, people tend to think that is the reason you produce something of value.

[creeves78.livejournal.com]

the tools must matter - my dad's a great carpenter, but he's always buying new, better tools for his next, better project. if you need better tools to do a better job, the tools must matter.