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Space

2001: A Space Laptop 226

Posted by timothy from the take-note,-Mir-trip-winner! dept.
Phrogman writes: "SpaceRef has posted an exclusive and detailed article concerning NASA's use of laptops in space including information on the LAN configuration aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis (with full-color diagrams); lists of software run on the Shuttle laptop computers (with screenshots like this); laptop specs; descriptions of the LAN to be installed on the Space Station; and a lot of other related official NASA materials and links." It's a neat primer on Taking Your Computer to Space, too -- it addresses things like the available power sources, the need for velcro, and quirks of operating in zero G.
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2001: A Space Laptop More

2001: A Space Laptop

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  • I wonder what sort of ping times you get from there...

    "Dammit, I just got fragged by another Earth-bound runt again..."

    I wonder if a Napster server in space could get sued?

  • Expect a storm of "OH my ghod they are running WINDOWS?" comments.
  • I wonder if the hard drive would perform better in zero gravity.... stupid thought maybe...

  • Does NASA trust there computers with Windows? I don't even trust my mother's Windows 98 box.

  • Duct Tape In Space! (Score:5)

    by John_Prophet ( 78703 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:07AM (#767790) Homepage
    Quoting from the article:
    The PGSC, and everything else inside the Shuttle, needs to be able to be attached to a stable surface to keep it from floating away. Next to duct tape (also known as "gray tape" at NASA), one of the standard means of attaching one thing to another in space is the use of Velcro.

    Heh. Duct tape and velcro are holding our space program together? Seems somehow appropriate. Maybe they can swing over to MIR and patch up some of THEIR problems. Apparently, those stupid russians have been using ordinary masking tape.


    -The Reverend
  • Now let's cross our fingers and hope that the astronomers don't really rely on the laptop, 'cause if it GPFs, or BSODs...
    ---
    dd if=/dev/random of=~/.ssh/authorized_keys bs=1 count=1024
  • Well, just look at Mir - they got infected with a macrovirus...#sigh#
    ESA uses Linux in their satellites though...
  • The diagrams and pictures mentionned don't seem to be available... Maybe discovery.com is doing a little preemptive correction for the slashdot effect. :-P
    ---
    Where can the word be found, where can the word resound? Not here, there is not enough silence.

  • The article does mention that they also use Linux and MacOS systems in space as well. Hopefully we will see a follow up article on the use of Linux as well.

  • That would be a lot of fun to trace the data - how much pr0n a day they download, or even better, imagine NASA cuts their line cuz they sucked up all the bandwidth with Gnutella and Napster. hmm..
  • This may be slightly off-topic here, but why are they telling 'us normal people' this?

    Personally, I'd be much more interested in hearing when we would be able to visit space (as normal people) rather than 'how to use our laptop'.

    Here's hoping they actually do build a space elevator before I'm gone. Instead of another vacation to Colorado, I could take a vacation to the ISS and actually do something 'new and exciting'.
  • bleh... astronauts
    ---
    dd if=/dev/random of=~/.ssh/authorized_keys bs=1 count=1024

  • Oh, no... (Score:3)

    by emerson ( 419 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:10AM (#767798)
    Everyone brace yourselves for the standard barrage of really dorky BSOD-in-space jokes moderated up as funny.


    --

  • I don't want to see the Russki's power supply (Score:5)

    by Hairy_Potter ( 219096 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:10AM (#767799) Homepage
    IBM ThinkPad series PGSCs are not the only laptops that have flown - or will fly in space. Computers using Mac OS and Linux have also flown as part of various payloads and are likely to continue to do so in the future. Meanwhile, the Russians will be using a Weiner Power laptop in their portion of the ISS. Other participating partners will likely bring their own laptops.

    All I can envision is wrapping wire around your penis and sticking it in and out of a magnet.

  • ... they run Windows 95...

  • Why dont they just do what most Top Secret military facilities do and have seperate "public" and "private" network terminals? No access to the public internet for mission critical systems, but have a few public terminals that can be used for communications both ways

  • some incredibly important missions are going to be botched 'cause of some fool playing minesweeper instead of paying attention...

  • i want them to take my laptop to space so i can tell everyone "hey see this laptop, it was in space!"

  • Re:Hrm... (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Please wait while trying to download some security patches from www.microsoft.com. These patches are necessary for the safe operation of [Insert one of the programs listed here [spaceref.com]].
  • They mention that cooling can be a problem, such as the fact that hot air doesn't necessarily rise in space.

    I suppose that means that they won't be sending up any overclocked laptops anytime soon.

  • After The Slashdot Cruiser (Score:5)

    by Slashdot Cruiser ( 227609 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:18AM (#767806) Homepage
    I've put a lot of thought into this. Please don't dismiss me right away.

    We all recognize the phenomenal success of Slashdot/Andover/VALinux/OSDN/Plymouth/Whoever-the -hell-they-are-this-month. The company has literally gobs of liquid cash to burn. Thanks to the contributions of unpaid open source developers everywhere, expenses are low. Thanks to banner ad hits, hardware sales, and software distribution (or distrobution if you're a regular here), revenue is high.

    I think the time has come for Slashdot to think big. I mean bigger than the Slashdot Cruiser. With that in mind, I would like to make a modest proposal:

    Paint the Slashdot logo on the Space Shuttle

    It could work: Thanks to 8 years of post-Cold War Democratic cutbacks, NASA is hard up for money. Heck, it's a wonder the Shuttle doesn't already look like something out of the NASCAR Winston Cup series.

    Why not corporate sponsorship of the Space Shuttle? And who better to provide that sponsorship than the site bringing us "News for Nerds. Stuff that matters?"

    Picture it: The Space Shuttle -- painted Slashdot-Green with the /. logo on the vertical stabilizer. We could even paint "This spacecraft Copyright 1997-2000 OSDN" on the side. We could replace all the computers inside the Shuttle with overclocked VALinux boxes. We could supply the crews with /. coffee mugs and Penquin Mints. Missions could be completed in half the time!

    We could even go a step further. We could the entire Shuttle fleet! Instead of "Enterprise", "Endeavor", "Columbia", we could have "CmdrTaco", "JonKatz", and "Hemos".

    Imagine hearing a newscaster saying, "The Space Shuttle JonKatz lifted off this morning. It will remain in orbit for three weeks." Doesn't that make you feel a little funny inside?

    Is the idea of an open-source space program just a dream? Won't you share the dream with me?
  • Y'all might be interested in the Fast Company article that's somewhat related, entitled "They Write the Right Stuff [fastcompany.com]." I believe that there was mention of this on /. some months back. It's about the computers that actually control the shuttle and the process of writing that software. Pretty hard-core.

    -Waldo
  • Well, how would zero-g affect the hardware in a computer? I'm sure it'd have at least some effect on drive spin times. If they kept the main hardware in a vaccum room, then heat would also be a totally different issue. It'd sure be a bitch to use a mouse; gotta keep a grip on it at all times....

    Anyone know? I dunno, I've always been more of a software kinda guy (no pun intended =P), but I've taken enoough hardware classes to build a computer from scratch.

  • You just had to bring Napster into this didn't you... ;)
  • "Ping Master?" "Water Dump?" "Pistol Grip Tool?" "File Sniffer?" Wow, those astronauts sure know how to party.

    ---------///----------
    All generalizations are false.

  • It'd sure be a bitch to use a mouse; gotta keep a grip on it at all times
    Perhaps the astronauts are the first to try the 3D movement of the mouse!
    But then again it's a laptop, so it's gonna be a pad, or whatever they call it.
    ---
    dd if=/dev/random of=~/.ssh/authorized_keys bs=1 count=1024
  • Exactly. Heat dissapation is a major problem in space. Unless the laptop's heatsinks are properly configured, you could very easily burn out the laptop with only a hour's use.

    Also, I imagine that disk ejection systems and CD drives need to be reconfigured so you don't have spinning discs floating all over the place.

    Makes you wonder what frisbee would be like in 0 G...

    Kierthos
  • http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/09/08/133024 6&mode=thread
  • Trolling?

    Actually, there was an article here last week about just this topic. A space elevator isn't possible today, right now. But in approximately fifty years we could very well have the materials and the ability to build a space elevator.
  • for my telecommute while riding the space elevator [slashdot.org]... Anyway...

    This is cool to see... I've often seen them using rather archane things, and now I really do know a little bit more of what seperates me from an astronaut.

    Anyone think they could do better tho? heheh

    ----

  • We know then that the P-IV will never see use in space, unless they integrate it into the climate control system instead of using conventional heating coils... hell, the mass of the chip and required heatsink (my god!) is probably too heavy to meet payload launch standards anyway...

  • In space, no one can hear you scream.
  • I could just see my orbital apartment.. cables *everywhere*.. yay.... :-)
  • Well, like I said earlier, unless the heat sinks are properly configured, you could very easily burn out the processor by overcloaking it. Part of the problem with heat dissipation in space (and part of the problem with breathing...) is the lack of gravity. With no natural breeze, you get the same air trapped around the processor.

    Now, yes, you can use fans to move air about. But how do the fans work in 0 G? (Well, microgravity, but pretty much the same thing...) I imagine that the fans have to be reconfigured as well.

    I also imagine that the boards have to be reinforced to withstand the forces during takeoff, as well as the screen... the mouse is simple; use the same little pad you normally do with laptops.

    Kierthos
  • It'd sure be a bitch to use a mouse; gotta keep a grip on it at all times....

    I'm not sure what, if anything, would forbid you from using a trackball, but it seems like a trackball (with a "velcro-modified" base :D) might be a better solution for Zero G pointer manipulation. Anybody care to point out how wrong I am?


    -The Reverend
  • It might require less energy to keep the platters spinning, but beyond that I can't think of any improvements from zero-g.
    ---
    Where can the word be found, where can the word resound? Not here, there is not enough silence.
  • I want it for my garage ! the coolness factor of this would be awesome.

    Not to mention that if a neighbour has it, and if it works via any type of hackable radio communication, one would be able to reprogram their torque/speed settings on the fly.

    Watch those bolts fly ;););)
  • Someone moderate this funny. I love it! The CmdrTaco shuttle... There would have to be a webcam linked to the earthbound site though, and not one that's screened by the govt. either. We want to see all the little green men...

  • You can never have too much velcro (Score:4)

    by WillAffleck ( 42386 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:33AM (#767824)
    Face it, when in variable G land (e.g. space), it's a really good idea to have too much velcro. And have suits with velcro-ended cables.

    Plus, the lack of air motion is very critical - you want a laptop with good heat dissipation and good fans, plus you need to be sure the fan motors can take varying G forces. Overclocking is a big no-no. Extra RAM is highly recommended.

    Then there's the CD. Remember, no gravity pulling down makes these very difficult to use. Best to have it in firmware or cartridge form. Spin effects can be very hard to clock right in low or zero-G, and it needs to survive the boost.

    Now, when will we see a smart company like Transmeta donate some laptops with low power consumption to NASA, both to sell the chip and to make them hot geek items? Heck, I can see the ads now "As Used By NASA In Zero-G", "The Laptop That Went To Space".

    What happens if you get the Blue Screen of Death - do you die?

  • I don't think a vacuum room would work. Wouldn't the hard drive crash? If I remember right, the read/write head rides on a small cusion of air extremely close to the disk. Remove the air and the head crashes into the disk tearing up the surface. I suspect they won't be using HDDs in a vacuum environment though. It's hard to say what effect the zero-g will have on them though. I don't think it'll make much difference.

  • for my telecommute while riding the space elevator..

    We're much more likely to see space elevators on Mars before they show up on Earth. Too much chance of lawsuits and terrorists. Just ask Stan Robinson, he's written some interesting stuff on that.

  • >Emerson: telling moderators what to do isn't "Informative", it's "Anal Retentive"

    The comma after "Informative" should go inside the quotation marks; also don't forget your closing punctuation.


    --
  • HDD's are sealed tight so that dust and other particles don't get jammed between the platter and the read/write head. That means, no matter where you are, the HD would still work fine (assuming no other effects regarding zero-g)
    ---
    dd if=/dev/random of=~/.ssh/authorized_keys bs=1 count=1024
  • Russians will be using a Weiner Power laptop

    I think that you (and others) are thinking about a wiener (not weiner) powered laptop. Besides, they're Russians not Germans. They would be more likely to use a potato powered laptop.

  • How much would you be able to overclock a 366 Celeron system if you put it outside the ship, and of course, in the shade?

  • Does NASA trust there computers with Windows?

    They use Windows on the laptops they carry up with them. It's not like they'll be running anything mission critical on them. They probably just want to get in a few rounds of Diablo II in between spacewalks.
  • [...]you could very easily burn out the processor by overcloaking[...]

    Burn out? Naw, it'd just shimmer a bit and then disappear...

    --K
    (Sorry, had to. ;)
    ---
  • Oh, now you've revealed the true meaning of all these BSOD's: "Get better quality hardware and all your (BSOD) problems will go away!" - Bill Gates.
    No wonder my computer crashes all the time... :)
    ---
    dd if=/dev/random of=~/.ssh/authorized_keys bs=1 count=1024
  • >Emerson: telling moderators what to do isn't "Informative", it's "Anal Retentive"

    The comma after "Informative" should go inside the quotation marks; also don't forget your closing punctuation.

    Personally I'd agree with the second point, not the second.
    'Rules' for things like quoting have changed in the last few decades - I think it's explained in the Jargon File.
    ----
  • Image what it would be like to run servers in outer space...talk about CPU cooling! Just install an overclocked server farm on the far side of the moon, and watch how fast they go in the insane temperatures.

  • What, no Solitaire?

  • Comment removed (Score:3)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:46AM (#767837)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • Did you spot the euler-quaternion converter (Score:4)

    by SIGFPE ( 97527 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @11:49AM (#767838) Homepage
    Working in graphics I have endless problems with conversions of rotations between Euler angles and quaternions. It's funny to see that NASA must share these problems and actually have a stand alone tool to do the conversion. Can you imagine the situations where you actually have to type in those number by hand into a GIO like that!
    --
  • "We could even go a step further. We could the entire Shuttle fleet! Instead of 'Enterprise', 'Endeavor', 'Columbia', we could have 'CmdrTaco', 'JonKatz', and 'Hemos'."

    Hmm.... the museum piece "Enterprise" being renamed "CmdrTaco"... are you trying to say something here?
  • I think you mean "not the first."

    And, yeah, the rules for quoting have been slipping (sadly) over the years, but the exceptions that are allowable have to do with changing the meaning of an actual quotation. In this case, quotation marks are being used to set off a word as interesting, not as an indicator of something someone actually said. So, the punctuation-inside rule should hold here.

    I can't believe I'm still paying attention to this non-thread... (*grin)


    --

  • There have been articles published in the past about Linux being used to operate experiments on the Space Shuttle. Some of the experiments have self contained computer systems for managment and data collection. Linux was ideal here.

    Now, I'd like to see a Linux/Apache web server in orbit. Even if it feeds nothing but text telemetry data, it would be impressive. Hmm, is there a TLD for LEO yet?

  • Re:Duct Tape In Space! (Troll?) (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I'm not the mod, but I would have mod'd you down too.

    Mir is a masterpiece of budget engineering, it has outlived it's expected lifespan by years. Could any other nation produce anything so successful? Not on current evidence.
    Your comment was uninformed, unfunny and - to some - flamebait.

    Consider yourself lucky to still be at 2.
  • I don't think that microgravity would make any difference, since the mass of the disk would be the same even if the weight was less. Hmmm, that would imply that the spin times would be the same on Jupiter as well, so I could be way off base on that. The astronauts always seem to be struggling with the larger pieces of equipment, but they are able to move them.

    Anybody who remembers more of Physics I than I do have an answer?

  • I'm pretty sure the Shuttle uses IBM ThinkPads. I'm very sure the ISS does. This probably means that the track point on the keyboard is the preferred method of control. Of course, the astronaut would have to be strapped down or they would drift away every time they touch the keyboard.

  • Re:Oh god, i now fear for my life (Score:2)

    by Anonymous Coward
    A reply to all the predictable "They're running Windows!" posts:

    1. Only the laptops are running Windows. They're not trusting their flight-control systems to it.

    2. Would Linux be able better for what they need? They're not serving web-pages, or handling multiple users. They're not worried about the cost of the software. Windows is an acceptable solution in this case. The end-users were probably already familiar with it, which is always a benefit ...
    So, honestly, does it really matter?
  • I'm one of those sick people who actually watches NASA TV during shuttle missions. It's kind of a out of this world reality TV show. Anyway, the laptops onboard do lockup from time to time. They just reboot and try again. As was said earlier, nothing mission critical is run on them.
  • Once again a triumphuntly UN-funny post has overcome all odds to be modded up to 3. Can he do it again 4 years later?
    ---
  • earth.world.com is running Sol/4.5Billion on Milkyway
    Why'd you ask?
    ---
    dd if=/dev/random of=~/.ssh/authorized_keys bs=1 count=1024
  • Take a look at how stable netscape is or how long it takes staroffice to load before your criticize windows.
  • OK, funniest thing I've seen today:
    Meanwhile, the Russians will be using a Weiner Power laptop in their portion of the ISS.
    What?!? I guess meat-free wiener products such as the popular "Not-Dog" don't satisfy power requirements?
  • The article implies that NASA is using widows for mission critical computing. I know that NASA has run DOS, Windows, MacOS and even NeXTStep in supporting roles, but I didn't think these were allowed to run the important stuff. Several years ago NASA installed DEC workstations to run the mission critical applications. I have heard that the DEC machines were replaced. I have not heard that Windows is stable enough to stay up during an entire mission, which is what be required to run the missiion critical apps. Inquiring minds want to know.

    That said, there have been a number of portables flown in space. In particular, does anyone remember a time when a GRiD was the machine to have in space. Now that was a laptop. It seemed to be space-worthy right out of the box. Too bad it went away before I had the money to acquire one.

  • Not that linux is any better.
    ---
  • That's assuming of course that the seal is strong enough to hold the air inside when put in a vacuum environment. I can't say I've ever tried it. Besides, this is the government we're talking about. I'm sure they can find a way to spend several hundred grand to get a better seal. I think this is a moot point anyway. There's no reason I can think of a hard drive would need to be in a vacuum environment. Of course if the cabin lost pressure you wouldn't want your systems to crash because of a weak seal. That could ruin your whole day. Oh well. Maybe they could just use solid state hard drives or something.

  • Most hard drives have a filtered pressure equalization port that allows air to move in and out of the drive housing.
  • Imagine how good sysadmin on the Space Shuttle would look on your resume.
  • If Windows crashes in space, and no one is there to see the BSOD... it's still a piece of crap.

  • Y'all may be too young to remember this, but (Score:4)

    by plastik55 ( 218435 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @12:10PM (#767857) Homepage
    The first laptop to fly aboard the Apace Shuttle was, in fact the Macintosh Portable, on STS-43. See the report from Apple here [apple.com]

    We all had a good laugh when the 16lb. beast became the first truly weightless laptop.

  • It's rather interesting when you think about the technology used in space exploration. Most of the shuttle technology is mid-70's to mid-80's. Makes you wonder what we (as an autonomous tech-collective) could come up with as far as space exploration is concerned. Could you imagine open-source space technology? Tech heads from around the world collaborating to create a better future in space (sounds like Star Trek or Gundam, don't it).

    Anyway, it was just a thought...

    Capt. Ron

  • Re:After The Slashdot Cruiser (Score:2)

    by Anonymous Coward
    This idea has been suggested before, on NASA Watch:

    http://www.nasawatch.com/humor/shut tle.ads.html [nasawatch.com]

  • They seem to be doing so to provide legacy support to specialized DOS applications.
  • ... by the looks of those buttons.

    Ew.

  • How could they last without DOOM?
  • Duct tape and velcro are holding our space program together? Seems somehow appropriate.

    Remember Apollo 13? Duct tape was essential for assembling that temporary CO2 filter that helped keep the astronauts from choking to death.

    Don't you keep a roll of duct tape around your house "just in case?" The astronauts sure do - they can't just run out to the hardware store for some when they're in Earth orbit...

    Eric
    --

  • Re:After The Slashdot Cruiser (Score:4)

    by Mtgman ( 195502 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @12:51PM (#767877)
    "The Space Shuttle JonKatz lifted off this morning. It will remain in orbit for three weeks."

    Not nearly long enough. Send JonKatz to check out Europa, then maybe we'll be free of FUD for a while.

    Steven
  • All I can envision is wrapping wire around your penis and sticking it in and out of a magnet.
    Sigh... Figures we'd get a reaction like that from the six-digit-account-number crowd. Slashdot isn't what it used to be.

    How could anyone not picture an earnest little space dachshund [umanitoba.ca], plodding away on a treadmill?
  • I can remeber trackballs embedded into the tops of radar workstations on navy ships. They were the size of bowling balls, but maybe only exposed 60 degrees of surface area. I actually like them alot, and everything else has seemed to be way too small for my taste since then. In this context, this type of technology embedded into an arm rest or desktop might be interesting.

    - - - - - - - -
    "Never apply a Star Trek solution to a Babylon 5 problem."

  • Sigh... Figures we'd get a reaction like that from the six-digit-account-number crowd. Slashdot isn't what it used to be.

    I might expect such a comment from a five-digit-account-number poster like yourself. Slashdot isn't what it used to be. Far Side pics? On Slashdot? How frivolous! I remember back when the only acceptable allusions on Slashdot were to man pages, Linus quotes, and kernel source. What a soft lot we've become...

    Besides, any real geek would have thought up a Monty Python reference.

    --Lenny, who owns a dachshund

  • Re:Sigh. (Score:3)

    by ptomblin ( 1378 ) <ptomblin@xcski.com> on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @01:23PM (#767893) Homepage Journal
    I might expect such a comment from a five-digit-account-number poster like yourself. Slashdot isn't what it used to be.

    Geez, you over 2000-account-number guys are touchy, aren't you? Why, back in my day...
  • Why dont they just do what most Top Secret military facilities do and have seperate "public" and "private" network terminals?

    You mean like how it was for Wen Ho Lee? Yeah, perfect security - at least until the lusers come along.
  • You wouldn't; vacuum is a perfect insulator.
    There wouold approximately 0 heat dissipation due to convection.

    Your chip would cook itself almost immediately.

  • Even if I were in a vacuum right now, I would still be comfortable in terms of temperature because I would be radiating heat away approximately fast as I was absorbing it. Besides, if space is so warm, why do the astronauts have heating devices in the suits they wear for EVMs?

    Yes, space is as warm as I think, at least when the sun is shining upon you. When you are in sunlight, the radiant heat which you absorb is quite enormous, quite a good deal more than you radiate away, even if you have good thermal transfer between your "light" side and your "dark" side. The amount of heat which you radiate away is fairly constant, no matter how much radiant heat you are absorbing at a given time.

    If you were in a vacuum, and you weren't in space, you could be correct, however, in space, in the presence of a heat radiating body, such as the sun, will increase your temperature enormously, in the absence of such a thing, you eventually radiate all your heat away, save what little heat is transferred to you by collisions with the few molecules that are present in interplanetary space.

    IIRC, they're not heaters, but more "temperature regulators." Basically they either absorb heat or generate heat as necessary to keep the intrepid spacewalker from burning up at 400 degrees if he's in sunlight, or pretty much freezing to death in the event that he's in shade. However, most particles that one finds in space tend to be highly energetic, since they tend to move at a good fraction of the speed of light. However, there are very few of them per unit volume, and so one's trusty thermometer becomes decidedly un-trusty, and registers a temperature reading somewhere below -200F, unless, of course, the probe is in direct sunlight, in which case, depending on the design, the matter which makes up the probe gets nice and hot and registers quite a warm temperature.

    In the end, the "temperature" in space doesn't really apply anyway, since temperature is a measure of the energy level of a molecule, and space has no molecules. The only reason Earth has a temperature is of course because all of the molecules have a temperature, and the density of those molecules is such that they tend to bang into the temperature sensing device quite a lot.

    Hope that clears it up, -Nathan
    Care about freedom?

  • Re:Sigh. (Score:3)

    by drendite ( 3 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @02:33PM (#767907)
    And don't even get me started on those two-plus-digit-account-numbers ..
  • And what happens when their Winblows box blue screens?
  • "Slashdot, where rampant commercialism (like Microsoft) is unaccepted - except when it's us."

    Can you imagine the furious flame backlash if I had said "Let's paint the shuttle with a Microsoft icon?" :)

  • Like the article says; the way they have things set up, it's no big deal. A quick restart, and they are back to a known.

    Remember, it doesn't *MATTER* what the OS is capable of, only that the apps they need to run run with acceptable reliability.

    These aren't flight control computers with realtime acquisition and feedback.. those are custom built.

    They are PC's, for general purpose stuff.
  • Duct tape and velcro are holding our space program together?

    Remember Apollo 13?

    Remember Apollo 1? Velcro in a high-pressure, high-oxygen environment is what turned a small spark into a fire that killed three astronauts.

  • Fine, how about... (Score:3)

    by Kris_J ( 10111 ) on Tuesday September 19, 2000 @06:22PM (#767956) Homepage Journal
    "In space, no one can hear you segfault."

    Although inhabitants of nearby planets might catch a brief flash...

  • A conventional mouse relies on gravity to work.. take away the gravity, the mouse becomes useless

    If you need proof, try this:

    Turn your mouse upside down (or on its' side, any orientation that's not normal), and place a book over the bottom, then move the book around.. you'll notice that the screen pointer doesn't move..

    Ball point pens don't work in zero G either, for similar reasons.

    Optical mice would be a different story
  • Did anybody else find this text at the bottom of the article from Apple funny?

    "APPLE EYES ONLY Information section - Apple Need-To-Know Confidential"
  • how much could you over clock a processor in the coldness of space?

    Not much, cooling devices for CPUs rely on conductive and convective methods of transferring heat away from the CPU. In the vacuum, which I imagine is what you meant by the 'coldness of space' the only available method of heat transfer is radiative. And for a running CPU this isn't much.

  • With no natural breeze, you get the same air trapped around the processor.
    I work in an office like this. With no fan, if I run my fanless Ultralight at 100% (MP3s, SETI@home, D.Net, etc) from the beginning of the day it crashes between 2-4pm. But any fan even vaguely close to the unit will cool it sufficently for surviving the whole day.
  • "nothing mission critical is run on them."

    No system is "mission critical" until the mission relies on it.

    History has shown that it can come down the the number of plastic bags on board. If these systems are "unimportant" to the mission then why are they on board?

    So they're somewhere between "useless mass" and "mission critical." Sooner or later, a mission's success may hinge on the operation of some or all of the computers onboard, perhaps to a purpose that was not forseen in the mission planning phases.

  • I would expect that in 0 or low gravity, designers would be free of many of the constraints operating on Earth-bound computers.

    Laptops? I would have imagined thinks like that personal assistant floating ball that Slashdot said NASA found in Star Wars.

    Imagine computers around you, portables, projection screens, holograms, keyboards on your trousers, shaped as a ball, a tube, wahtever, but no laptops.
    __
  • Depends a lot on the design of the mouse.

    Some have lots of room within the ball compartment, so if gravity isn't pulling the ball to the hole, the ball falls (or floats) away. Other designs have a tight ball compartment, so they're not affected.

    (Hope this message isn't filtered as pr0n, with all this talk of tight balls)

  • Re:Velcro on the pad (Score:3)

    by gorilla ( 36491 ) on Wednesday September 20, 2000 @04:58AM (#767990)
    Where do you get this idea?

    The Offical findings [nasa.gov] include

    • No single ignition source of the fire was conclusively identified.
    • The Command Module contained many types and classes of combustible material in areas contiguous to possible ignition sources.
    • Coolant leakage at solder joints has been a chronic problem.
    • The coolant is both corrosive and combustible.
    • Deficiencies in design, manufacture, installation, rework and quality control existed in the electrical wiring.
    • These deficiencies created an unnecessarily hazardous condition and their continuation would imperil any future Apollo operations.
    • The Command Module Environmental Control System design provides a pure oxygen atmosphere.
    • This atmosphere presents severe fire hazards if the amount and location of combustibles in the Command Module are not restricted and controlled.

    The only mention I can find of velcro in the whole report is when velcro straps burn, but this is some 15 seconds after the start of the fire, so they're obviously not the cause.

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