Interesting posts, as always js! 
With regard to the potting, I find that quite intriguing. I have never thought about the possibility of the thermal expansion properties of the potting compound causing damage to the electronics. What is more, I have never read of it anywhere on CPF! I would think if it was a major concern or was leading to premature failure in lights, more members would have brought it up.
Without having much knowledge myself, I am curious what sort of temperature swings we would need to be looking at to see these problems. For example, does a light need to be clunking around in a duty or ammo bag in a vehicle trunk, seeing lows of -10F all the way to highs of 120F for this to be a problem? Perhaps even more extreme? If so, I am not concerned as my EDC is either in my pocket or my hand and is unlikely to see such extremes. It IS however, fairly likely to be dropped from a ladder or submerged!! The G2Ls and E01s kept in my BOB in my car routinely do suffer terrible temperatures though, from fierce Wisconsin winter to the heat of summer in a black car. I guess my point is, yes it is theoretically an issue, but does it actually play out in reality in the case of flashlights (other electronic devices not being considered here)? I've not read about conformal coatings but will surely do so!
As for memory mode, I can see both sides of the coin. If you routinely use high, then the low reset would be a nuisance. And if you never forget (or never care) what mode you shut it down in, it may not be helpful either. I often find myself cycling back to low before shutting my McGs down though, as I can cycle to high in a flash if I need it but getting high immediately when I only wanted 10 lms is a bit of a shock to the blinkers. Lol. Also, I can see the benefit if you regularly use the light for just an instant but want it to turn back on in the same mode the next time - in that case Don's UI based around off-time is perfect. I don't use my lights like that often so it doesn't matter that much to me.
Frankly, I am fine with either style and I am flexible enough to flop between UIs easily. I might carry a Haiku, an MDC, an HDS Clicky and an E1L all at different times in a week, and all have different UIs and I like and dislike things about all of them. So I certainly can't claim to know what is best for anyone else as I cannot even decide what's best for me.
With regard to the potting, I find that quite intriguing. I have never thought about the possibility of the thermal expansion properties of the potting compound causing damage to the electronics. What is more, I have never read of it anywhere on CPF! I would think if it was a major concern or was leading to premature failure in lights, more members would have brought it up.
Without having much knowledge myself, I am curious what sort of temperature swings we would need to be looking at to see these problems. For example, does a light need to be clunking around in a duty or ammo bag in a vehicle trunk, seeing lows of -10F all the way to highs of 120F for this to be a problem? Perhaps even more extreme? If so, I am not concerned as my EDC is either in my pocket or my hand and is unlikely to see such extremes. It IS however, fairly likely to be dropped from a ladder or submerged!! The G2Ls and E01s kept in my BOB in my car routinely do suffer terrible temperatures though, from fierce Wisconsin winter to the heat of summer in a black car. I guess my point is, yes it is theoretically an issue, but does it actually play out in reality in the case of flashlights (other electronic devices not being considered here)? I've not read about conformal coatings but will surely do so!
As for memory mode, I can see both sides of the coin. If you routinely use high, then the low reset would be a nuisance. And if you never forget (or never care) what mode you shut it down in, it may not be helpful either. I often find myself cycling back to low before shutting my McGs down though, as I can cycle to high in a flash if I need it but getting high immediately when I only wanted 10 lms is a bit of a shock to the blinkers. Lol. Also, I can see the benefit if you regularly use the light for just an instant but want it to turn back on in the same mode the next time - in that case Don's UI based around off-time is perfect. I don't use my lights like that often so it doesn't matter that much to me.
Frankly, I am fine with either style and I am flexible enough to flop between UIs easily. I might carry a Haiku, an MDC, an HDS Clicky and an E1L all at different times in a week, and all have different UIs and I like and dislike things about all of them. So I certainly can't claim to know what is best for anyone else as I cannot even decide what's best for me.
Thanks for your help!
