Wow... what an interesting case study... I even found myself trolling through all the comments to see all the suggestions and improvements and discussions the huge community has made...
It's basically a very detailed case study of the diagnosis and repair (rebuild) of a led controlled light-harp, installed for kids in a museum called the "World of Wonder".
Some of the simplest things can save the greatest time, like just leaving adequate documentation with the install (for the next tech); using labels and polarised connectors for easy visibility and circuit tracing; and most of all, by following the golden rule of K.I.S.S... the more parts & control in there, the more to go wrong!
Another important issue the author brings up is of the tolerance / timing of parts (in these timing-critical situations). Interestingly, it is actually the design he uses that could be improved, as established later in the discussions... It just goes to show that there are many ways to approach a problem, all with their different pro's and cons. Good design is really an iterative solution to a problem, and many heads are indeed better than one.
Long live Open Design! let's learn to learn from others; and let's make the effort to share both those solutions that work, and those that don't, so we may further understand why!
... More info, and a description of the design problems-solutions, along with some very lively discussion also:
http://www.sparkfun.com/tutorials/282
...sharing and documenting the design and construction process of the 2011 USyd Interaction Design & Electronic Arts (M.IDEA) Device Lab major work
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