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This makes no sense and is difficult to even respond to coherently. > It's funny that as an industry we now know how to safely deploy software updates to hundr

This makes no sense and is difficult to even respond to coherently. > It's funny that as an industry we now know how to safely deploy software updates to hundreds of millions of phones, with security checks, signed firmwares, etc, Either you're completely wrong, because we "as an industry" still push bugs and security flaws, or you're comparing two completely different things. > doing that on applications with a super high unit price tag seems out of reach... is true because of > a few millions is like only a thousand hours of flying in jet fuel costs alone like do you really think they spent millions pushing a line of code? or do you think it's just inherently expensive to fly a jet, and so doing it twice costs more?

the_sleaze9 3y ago
I would generally pass this comment by, but it's just so distastefully hostile because you totally missed the point. GP's comment was expressing sardonic disbelief that a modern jet wouldn't be able to receive remote software updates, considering it's so ubiquitous and reliable in other fields, even those with much, much lower costs. Not that developers don't release faults.
- namaria 3y ago
  People tend to opine on systems engineering as if we had some sort of information superconductor connecting all minds involved. Systems are Hard and complex systems are Harder. Thinking of entire class of failures as 'solved' is kinda like talking about curing cancer. There isn't one thing called cancer, there's hundreds. There's no way to solve complex systems problems for good. Reality, technologies, tooling, people, language, everything changes all the time. And complex systems failure modes that happen today will happen forever.
- digging 3y ago
  Ahh, then I did misread it entirely. Thanks for stopping by to call me out. It's still probably not a matter of capability... I wouldn't be so cavalier about software updates on my phone if it was holding me thousands of feet above the ground at the time.
  - jacquesm 3y ago
    I already commented on this elsewhere but I came across a company that did OTA updates on a control box in vehicles without checking if the vehicle was in motion or not. And it didn't even really surprise me, it was just one of those things that came up when prepping for that job from a risk assessment. They never even thought of it.
- kayodelycaon 3y ago
  Remote software updates on military vehicles? Hasn't anyone seen the new Battlestar Galactica? :)
- Balooga 3y ago
  Imagine remotely bricking a fleet of fighter jets. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866
  - jacquesm 3y ago
    > Imagine remotely bricking a fleet of fighter jets. > https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866 That's about routers, was that the article you meant?

the_sleaze9 3y ago

I would generally pass this comment by, but it's just so distastefully hostile because you totally missed the point. GP's comment was expressing sardonic disbelief that a modern jet wouldn't be able to receive remote software updates, considering it's so ubiquitous and reliable in other fields, even those with much, much lower costs. Not that developers don't release faults.

namaria 3y ago
People tend to opine on systems engineering as if we had some sort of information superconductor connecting all minds involved. Systems are Hard and complex systems are Harder. Thinking of entire class of failures as 'solved' is kinda like talking about curing cancer. There isn't one thing called cancer, there's hundreds. There's no way to solve complex systems problems for good. Reality, technologies, tooling, people, language, everything changes all the time. And complex systems failure modes that happen today will happen forever.
digging 3y ago
Ahh, then I did misread it entirely. Thanks for stopping by to call me out. It's still probably not a matter of capability... I wouldn't be so cavalier about software updates on my phone if it was holding me thousands of feet above the ground at the time.
- jacquesm 3y ago
  I already commented on this elsewhere but I came across a company that did OTA updates on a control box in vehicles without checking if the vehicle was in motion or not. And it didn't even really surprise me, it was just one of those things that came up when prepping for that job from a risk assessment. They never even thought of it.
kayodelycaon 3y ago
Remote software updates on military vehicles? Hasn't anyone seen the new Battlestar Galactica? :)
Balooga 3y ago
Imagine remotely bricking a fleet of fighter jets. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866
- jacquesm 3y ago
  > Imagine remotely bricking a fleet of fighter jets. > https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35983866 That's about routers, was that the article you meant?