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Groups > comp.lang.java.programmer > #8742

Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking

From Martin Gregorie <martin@address-in-sig.invalid>
Newsgroups comp.lang.java.programmer
Subject Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking
Date 2011-10-12 22:03 +0000
Organization UK Free Software Network
Message-ID <j752r4$617$1@localhost.localdomain> (permalink)
References (3 earlier) <kftu87hmff3ubjti9t8eims2idhqn58l9o@4ax.com> <alpine.DEB.2.00.1110111908130.2814@urchin.earth.li> <7sudncbWtOTsrQjTnZ2dnUVZ876dnZ2d@telenor.com> <cfvb97ps3s09jfs0fhqdpckhcmnpairumu@4ax.com> <9LqdnfdVAsdGkQvTnZ2dnUVZ876dnZ2d@telenor.com>

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On Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:55:39 -0500, Leif Roar Moldskred wrote:

> Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> wrote:
>> 
>>     AIUI, it had to do with a type conversion that lost precision.
>> Either the exception was not thrown or was not handled.  (My sources
>> did not go into that detail.)
> 
> Yes ... but not really. The error manifested as an arithmetic overflow
> exception in the hardware, but that is an immaterial detail. The
> _actual_ problem didn't have anything to do with exception handling or
> even with programming errors.
> 
> What had happened was that that they took a piece of code that had been
> written for the Ariane 4 rocket -- and which was correct and without
> defects -- and put it onto the much larger and more powerful Ariane 5
> rocket without considering if the code was fit for its new purpose and
> without testing the way the code interacted with the rest of the system.
> 
> It was the wrong code, but there was nothing wrong _with_ the code: like
> a traffic cop trying to measure the speed of a passing car with a hair
> dryer -- there's nothing wrong _with_ the hair dryer, but the hair dryer
> is clearly the wrong choice.

The full report, which makes interesting reading, is here:
http://esamultimedia.esa.int/docs/esa-x-1819eng.pdf



-- 
martin@   | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org       |

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Thread

in praise of type checking Roedy Green <see_website@mindprod.com.invalid> - 2011-10-05 23:33 -0700
  Re: in praise of type checking Lew <lewbloch@gmail.com> - 2011-10-06 06:43 -0700
    Re: in praise of type checking Daniel Pitts <newsgroup.nospam@virtualinfinity.net> - 2011-10-06 09:52 -0700
    Re: in praise of type checking Roedy Green <see_website@mindprod.com.invalid> - 2011-10-07 12:43 -0700
      Re: in praise of type checking Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> - 2011-10-07 14:57 -0700
      Re: in praise of type checking Eric Sosman <esosman@ieee-dot-org.invalid> - 2011-10-07 20:18 -0400
  Re: in praise of type checking Robert Klemme <shortcutter@googlemail.com> - 2011-10-06 22:31 +0200
    Re: in praise of type checking Roedy Green <see_website@mindprod.com.invalid> - 2011-10-07 12:36 -0700
      Re: in praise of type checking Robert Klemme <shortcutter@googlemail.com> - 2011-10-08 16:05 +0200
        Re: in praise of type checking Lew <lewbloch@gmail.com> - 2011-10-08 09:35 -0700
          Re: in praise of type checking Robert Klemme <shortcutter@googlemail.com> - 2011-10-11 07:48 +0200
            Re: in praise of type checking Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> - 2011-10-11 13:04 -0700
            Re: in praise of type checking Arved Sandstrom <asandstrom3minus1@eastlink.ca> - 2011-10-11 17:52 -0300
              Re: in praise of type checking Patricia Shanahan <pats@acm.org> - 2011-10-12 01:49 +0100
                Re: in praise of type checking Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> - 2011-10-11 19:12 -0700
            Re: in praise of type checking Lew <lewbloch@gmail.com> - 2011-10-11 19:10 -0700
  Re: in praise of type checking Eric Sosman <esosman@ieee-dot-org.invalid> - 2011-10-06 20:29 -0400
    Re: in praise of type checking Robert Klemme <shortcutter@googlemail.com> - 2011-10-06 23:56 -0700
      Re: in praise of type checking Gunter Herrmann <notformail0106@earthlink.net> - 2011-10-07 13:57 -0400
  Re: in praise of type checking Arved Sandstrom <asandstrom3minus1@eastlink.ca> - 2011-10-07 07:19 -0300
    Re: in praise of type checking Roedy Green <see_website@mindprod.com.invalid> - 2011-10-07 12:39 -0700
      Re: in praise of type checking Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> - 2011-10-07 15:03 -0700
        Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Tom Anderson <twic@urchin.earth.li> - 2011-10-11 19:26 +0100
          Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Leif Roar Moldskred <leifm@dimnakorr.com> - 2011-10-12 01:15 -0500
            Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Travers Naran <tnaran@gmail.com> - 2011-10-12 07:23 -0700
            Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Martin Gregorie <martin@address-in-sig.invalid> - 2011-10-12 20:04 +0000
            Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> - 2011-10-12 13:53 -0700
              Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Leif Roar Moldskred <leifm@dimnakorr.com> - 2011-10-12 16:55 -0500
                Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Gene Wirchenko <genew@ocis.net> - 2011-10-12 15:02 -0700
                Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Leif Roar Moldskred <leifm@dimnakorr.com> - 2011-10-13 00:08 -0500
                Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Arved Sandstrom <asandstrom3minus1@eastlink.ca> - 2011-10-13 07:48 -0300
                Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking "John B. Matthews" <nospam@nospam.invalid> - 2011-10-14 07:09 -0400
                Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Martin Gregorie <martin@address-in-sig.invalid> - 2011-10-12 22:03 +0000
            Re: Space probes was Re: in praise of type checking Tom Anderson <twic@urchin.earth.li> - 2011-10-14 14:14 +0100
  Re: in praise of type checking RedGrittyBrick <RedGrittyBrick@spamweary.invalid> - 2011-10-07 11:50 +0100
    Re: in praise of [loosey goosey] type checking) RedGrittyBrick <RedGrittyBrick@spamweary.invalid> - 2011-10-07 12:20 +0100
  Re: in praise of type checking Andreas Leitgeb <avl@gamma.logic.tuwien.ac.at> - 2011-10-07 14:00 +0000

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