I remember way back when, when I had my very first washing machine, I knew how long the wash was taking and roughly when it would finish because the selector knob rotated and showed how many minutes were left. It was almost like turning a clockwork knob, and if you think that makes me sound old, for the first two years I was married I managed with a cold water tap and a sink, boiling water on the gas stove, followed by - joy of joys - a Baby Burco Boiler, which was filled with cold water, then plugged in to heat up. It took for ever, but the minute one's back was turned it came up to boil and spilled boiling hot water all over the kitchen floor. I suppose you could say it did two jobs at once!