Can't agree more, Spock. There are a zillion other things that are easier to use. In fact, "a match" is a great choice. A fire steel works great on cotton balls and stoves, but not much else. I did have a bic butane fail on me last year but a match came to the rescue.
My fire starter test...try scraping/lighting magnesium when its cold/windy/wet and see how much fun that is.