[ale] OT: [Fwd: It's the Wrong Toilet, Gromit! And it's gone Wrong!]

[Geoffrey]

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: It's the Wrong Toilet, Gromit! And it's gone Wrong!
Date: Fri, 27 Feb 2004 11:06:53 -0800
From: glen mccready <gkm at petting-zoo.net>
Reply-To: deadbeef at petting-zoo.net
To: 0xdeadbeef <0xdeadbeef at petting-zoo.net>

Forwarded-by: Richard Todd <rmtodd at ichotolot.servalan.com>

The item below was found on comp.risks today.  The thought of a system of
toilets so complex that they *need* a Windows-based control system just
boggles the mind.  The fact that the toilets were down for two days until
the vendor could fix the system is just icing on the cake.  To quote that
famous fictional engineer Montgomery Scott, "The more complicated they make
the plumbing, the easier it is to stop up the drain."


Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2004 11:01:12 +0000
From: "Wendy M. Grossman" <wendyg at pelicancrossing.net>
Subject: Bug in Windows-operated toilet system

I was at a press conference on Thursday with PalmSource at One Aldwych,
which is one of those hyper-modern London hotels.  One of its features is a
airplane-style vacuum-operated toilet system.  One of the Palm execs told me
that while they were staying at the hotel this system failed, and any time
they wanted to use the bathroom or take a shower they had to call the
reception desk and get escorted to the corporate headquarters in the
building next door to use the facilities there.  For a couple of *days*.

It transpires that the entire plumbing system is run by a Windows-based
computer system and whatever went wrong with it was so obscure that they had
to get a technician from the company that supplied it on a plane down from
Scotland to fix it and reboot.

The Blue Screen of Sewage?

   [There's a "Sucker" Borne Every Evacuation!  PGN]



-- 
Until later, Geoffrey                     Registered Linux User #108567
Building secure systems inspite of Microsoft