Nice post. You laid out the case for standardization very nicely. The problem being that every manufacturer thinks that their sales hinge on their 'proprietary' items. Android phones seem to have proved that is not the case. They designed their phones to take the absolutely standard USB plug and can be charged off damn near anything. Apple, on the other hand has 'firewire' connectivity. Do they really think people buy their phones because they already have a USB to firewire cable?

When I got my apple phone (a gift-I certainly wouldn't pay that freight) I bought a three pack of independent supplied charge wires. I did pay the extra and got braided and upgraded wire. Because I KNOW they are going to fail in normal use and don't want to be held hostage by the company for an emergency wire. Those are damn good wires I bought because I still have 2 spares after a year and a half of use. Includes a couple of months on Connie so I might say 'hard use'.

Anyway, Henry Ford proved that you could still make a fine return with standardized stuff. Until Henry and the King of Sweeden set the standard for bolt head sizes you had to own manufacturer's wrenches to work on a specific brand. It seems that little experiment paid off ok.

My Inspirion is only 2 years old, and the original charger is still holding up pretty well. I really only use it when I travel, it has a pocket in a bag where it lives full time, and I really do look out for it. But I concur with your design ideas and the idea that standards could and should be applied.

Here's hoping somebody puts the bug in your fellow Texan's ear and that particular irritation goes away in the near future.