14 Oct
2005
14 Oct
'05
11:28 p.m.
This is actually not as hypothetical as it soiunds.
I'm working with a
firm that manufactures parts for nuclear reactors. Parts certification
alone can take years. I remember a friend working for GE in the 80's
remarking that their computers in the field were still built of discrete
semiconductors, with core and running from paper tape.
One has to keep in mind that companies are bought and sold, sell off and
scrap assets, assets are destroyed, etc. So keeping some sort of hardware
arouind to run this stuff is not an option.
Actually I think having the hardware around to run it isn't simply an
option, it's a requirement. Once it's certified, you can't easily
substitute out different hardware.
Zane
--
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| Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Administrator |
| healyzh at aracnet.com (primary) | OpenVMS Enthusiast |
| | Classic Computer Collector |
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