Living machinery is intended to interact with the operator, and the operator's skills and know-how play an essential part in how the machine in question does or doesn't perform. Tube radios, sailboats, cars of a certain age, mechanical clocks and watches, and certain light aircraft all fall into the "living machinery" category..."dead machinery" you just punch the buttons until nothing happens anymore, and then just walk away from it...a television set or BIC lighter are good examples. We may spend thousands of hours in front of a TV set, but once worn out, it seems they get thrown away and never enter our thoughts again.

A guy who flies traffic patrol in a light plane in the DC metro area takes care to spray down the leading edge of each wing from a yellow can before takeoff...It's Lemon Pledge, which make it easier to clean off all the insects the wing accumulates on morning flights. My favorite light aircraft is the DeHaviland Beaver floatplane.