The blind leading the blind...

[AndyR]

I was on youtube looking at some laser videos (i was bored) and I realized how amusing the comments section could be.

For example, some inquiring person asks if this laser outputs IR ...

Answered by "this thing doesn't need an ir filter

its more uv than ir

and ir is hot and uv is cold light

so it's safer to look in that beam than in the beam of a green laser"

Take in mind this was on the comments for a 100 mW bluray laser video.

 

[kevinmassey]

lol its amazing what people make up about lasers.

 

[Grix]

Oh god.. No wonder people go around blinding themselves with lasers, thinking it's safe. Basic laser safety/info should be taught in science class in schools, lasers are becoming more and more usual in daily life.

 

[Crazy Jay]

Theres a song that says ".. if you're going to dumb, you've got to be tough..."

Lets hope they're tough :crackup:

 

[Greenmechanic]

A lot of people "get" into lasers from seeing Youtube videos.
It's only when they come here or another forum that they realize how misinformed they were.
Take the video's of hooking a laser diode directly to a battery.
Sure it will work.... for about 2 minutes, if you are lucky!
Or video's of people shining their 200 mW green around without safety glasses on.
I even seen one where the guy's beam was reflecting off of a glass object and hitting very near his face. Stupid!!
And or course the famous lighting a cigarette with a 6X, without glasses on, while holding it in his mouth.
People do not realize how dangerous lasers are, I guess.
And, don't get me started on the misinformation out there from e-bay sellers. Do they pull the specs. and information, out of their As$???

 

[Crazy Jay]

]I even seen one where the guy's beam was reflecting off of a glass object and hitting very near his face

Haha I saw that one too

 

[kevinmassey]

yeah i think it was with a DL 150mw

 

[Crazy Jay]

lasers are getting stronger for their sizes too so education is really important. Get this.... my 9 year old sister just got a digital camera and she has no idea how to turn it off. Should kids have access to this stuff? Its kind of scary

 

[Ears and Eggs]

This kinda think almost makes me wish there was a licensing process required (nothing too involved, just a mandatory short safety class and test) for anyone buying a laser over 1mW. If that does not happen, it won't be long till there is a high profile case involving a laser injury and our hobby could go extinct. Lasers plus untrained users is a recipe for inevitable destruction of our hobby. Man I wish the old days when anything except those cheap 1mW reds were extremely rare and almost unheard of to the general population.

 

[KiLLrB]

If you guys see someone being stupid on the video or someone giving misimformation do the right thing and correct them or report unsafe acts to youtube so others dont hurt themselfs by imitating the idiots.

 

[Moebius]

Ya mean like this??

YouTube - KTP Yag Laser

 

[Crazy Jay]

Haha and after they smoked the combined smell of tobacco and hobo mattress they all burned to death from a massive basement fire which eerily burned green long after the laser melted away.

EDIT: isn't Yag just Gay backwards?

 

[photonaholic]

and the wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round....

 

[Crazy Jay]

all through the town!

 

[phoenix77]

@ photon, Wayne, You're a scream. That brought back so many old memories. +1 REP, (if the system says OK), for nostalgia.
SORRY WAYNE, system says "NYET !!!", darn it. Thanks for the short walk back through 'The Good Old Days' !!!!! (Wheels on the Bus) lol

 

[Eudaimonium]

Here in Croatia everything about lasers is pretty much 20 years behind the rest of the world.

My friend who was a member here also, one went to largest electronic component store in Cro (pretty famous one, they basically have every component you can think of needing , not closely related to lasers OFC), and saw a <5mW red laser module (something like aixiz, only it was not chromed and it was not focusable I think).

It retailed for $35 or something (that was a year ago or something, mind you!).
My friend said to the guy behind the counter: Dude you for serious? I can buy two 300mW LOC diodes for that!

The guy said: Well yeah but they emit a lot of IR which is harmful.

*facepalm*

EDIT: Oh, sorry for going off topic here, I also witnessed a lot of facepalming comments on youtube.
Some also claiming red lasers emit IR, that videos of lasers doing some burning are complete fake,
And my favs: (not quoted , something alike that, not seen only once)
" I tried kipkays hack, after I connected the diode to 9V batt to test it, it is a very weak diode and does not burn"
"It's fake, if it was not fake, the diode would melt the DVD in the drive"
"The diodes are very weak, they do not burn, they only emit very faint light"
And variations are endless ...