A control system and method selects a switch configuration for a power circuit having N binary switches, based in part on a finite state machine. The applicator assembly includes a liquid supply containing a supply of oil, a distributor connected to the liquid supply for distributing the oil, and an applicator having an area for receiving oil from the distributor and an application edge. Digital effects and filters are dynamically stored, modified, updated or deleted, providing extensible reconfigurable effects studio. The present invention is also directed to a method of making the articles having a visually observable patterned appearance involving masking and applying the coating or applying the coating and removing a portion of the coating to form the pattern. In a typical embodiment, the thermocouple 42 is made by connecting a platinum wire 43A and a platinum-rhodium alloy wire 43B, and the antireflective film 50 is composed by stacking a silicon nitride layer 50C, silicon layer 50B and a silicon nitride layer 50A in that order.