Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Programmable switches for OCD sufferers

Click 5 times = On
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Saves money on light bulbs.
theleopard, Aug 06 2009

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       any way to verify that it is off, for sure, totally, not halfway?   

       or is that in the deluxe model?
ericscottf, Aug 07 2009
  

       Unfortunately, this idea doesn't address that particular symptom, but I would propose an RFID tag on the sufferer, which when it goes out of range automatically shuts down the house apart from an enormous red humming neon sign on the roof that reads "Off" in friendly letters.   

       [brevity]
theleopard, Aug 10 2009
  

       Is it the number of times the sufferer needs to click the switch, or the number of times he needs to see the light go on and off? If it's the latter, then programming the switch to 5 will need 25 clicks, unless you get the light to flash 5 times with 1 click. But that wouldn't save light bulbs.
shudderprose, Aug 10 2009
  

       I have a feeling that this would just make it so that the sufferer would then feel compelled to flick the switch twenty five times so that light can go on and off five times like it was supposed to in the first place.   

       <seconds later>   

       [shudderprose] beat me to the punch on that one but I feel compelled to leave it.   

       Another alternative: switches that auto-off after some time delay; the auto-off can be prevented by touching/activating the switch *again* (every few minutes). If you leave the house, all your lights will go off within a few minutes (and the stove and iron too, of course).
bernz, Aug 11 2009
  

       5??!!!!! not 5!!! It has to be in multiples of 2, in square roots, cube roots, or a prime higher than 23!   

       AAAARRRRRRGGGHHH!!!!!
twitch, Aug 11 2009
  

       The lights in the hallway to my flat are timed, they only stay on for about 2 minutes.   

       [twitch], I like 5s, they're practically decimal! Stop twitching!
theleopard, Aug 11 2009
  

       Decimal sucks. Octal is where it's at. Just ask the Hutt. Much more musical besides.
RayfordSteele, Aug 11 2009
  
      
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