GNU/Linux is Out of this World at Robert Pogson

GNU/Linux is Out of this World

Published by Robert Pogson June 2nd, 2011 in technology. 6 Comments

Richard Chapman sent me a link to a log of activity for the International Space Station.

The server was migrated from that other OS to GNU/Linux
The client was migrated to “T61p”, a Lenovo model that ships with that other OS… The ISS started with Lose ’95 on clients back in the day.

When I think back to my last experience with Lose ’95 out-of-the-box, I am shocked that ISS did not fall out of the sky. Lose ’95 shipped with no security and 50K bugs. ISS is only a decade or more behind the times. They are actually scheduling anti-virus activity up there.

- Robert Pogson

6 Responses to “GNU/Linux is Out of this World”

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1 revdjenk Jun 3rd, 2011 at 2:25 pm

Even better, many of the base systems on the Shuttle are still functioning under the control of eleven 6809 cpus that were at the core of my 1984 Radio Shack Color Computer! Last report I saw, their system was running OS9 a Unix-base with multi-thread, multi-user capabilities.
2 Ray Jun 3rd, 2011 at 3:52 pm

Not really, Windows 95 back then was extremely unreliable, so they had to use NT for server and delicate operations.
3 Greg Jun 4th, 2011 at 4:21 am

Linux (Slackware) has been “out of this world” for a long time.. http://www.scribd.com/doc/6699887/Linux-on-the-International-Space-Station
4 Robert Pogson Jun 4th, 2011 at 5:13 am

Nice link. Thanks. I guess the Shuttle was designed in the Dark Ages of IT and they never restarted from scratch so that other OS crept in. The ISS has similar roots although I would think that after a few re-re-reboots they would have decided to switch before now. It is on the server but the clients still use that other OS on the LAN.
5 aikiwolfie Jun 5th, 2011 at 12:14 pm

Absolutely nothing wrong with the shuttles computers. What matters is they are fit for purpose. And they clearly are. After all how many times have we seen an old UNIX system that worked perfectly fine torn out and replaced by something else that’s half baked and untested just to watch the whole thing go down in flames. And why are these “upgrades” carried out? Because the market says so.

If it aint broke, don’t fix it.
6 Robert Pogson Jun 5th, 2011 at 2:30 pm

I’d like to know how often they BSOD…

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My Mission

My observations and opinions about IT are based on 40 years of use in science and technology and lately, in education. I like IT that is fast, cost-effective and reliable. I do not care whether my solution is the same as yours. I like to think for myself.

My first use of GNU/Linux in 2001 was so remarkably better than what I had been using, I feel it is important work to share GNU/Linux with the world. I have been blessed by working in schools where students and school systems have benefited by good, modular software easily installed in most systems.

I have shown GNU/Linux to thousands of students and hundreds of teachers over the years and will continue in some way doing that until I die in spite of the opposition.