With a flick of a switch, I found out that my fluorescent light fixture in my 1960's era master bathroom was failing.
The lights were on at about 30% of the typical illumination.
Thanks to my background in electrical engineering and a summer internship at one of the leading lighting control companies in the US, I knew the cause—the ballast was failing.
More specifically, the ballast, which is responsible for providing the initial high voltage to create an arc across the gas inside the fluorescent tubes, was not functioning properly. This arc is necessary to ionize the gas, allowing the lamp to illuminate fully.
So, I pondered my situation as I rid myself of sweat and grime from working outside. I guess I will have to take a trip to the hardware store. Should I replace just the ballast or the whole light fixture?
After five minutes, the light suddenly reached full brightness. Likely, this was due to a change in temperature affecting the components inside the ballast, which include capacitors and resistors that manage the energy needed to maintain the arc in the lamp.
I thought to myself, perhaps this malfunction could be useful—dim light for five minutes in the morning before the full brightness kicks in.
It's a feature, not a bug. (A term often used in software design where an apparent flaw turns out to be intentional or beneficial.)
Have you had anything like that in your life? Something that you or others initially thought was a defect but turned out to be a positive development?
What is your favorite "bug" that turned out to be a feature?