Quoting Marghanita da Cruz <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
You probably need to trawl through the ALP policy to figure out what the new
federal government is planning but they seem to share your thoughts on
efficencies if not industry development.
<http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/business/soa/Tanner-promises-to-lead-Razor-Gang-in-IT-carve-up/0,139023166,339288026,00.htm>
I don't think they are my thoughts....
IT across government is very complex and diverse. For example, the
computing systems used within a Health Department (including
hospitals) bear no resemblence to what might be needed within the
Roads or Fisheries Department. There is no real opportunities for
standardisation.
The article is just rhetoric. It could mean anything.
This is just gossip but what the heck..... Whilst I was in Germany
there was a lot of talk over beer at the decision in the UK to cut out
(razor) all German software from the new Heathrow airport system. They
did that and went for a more expensive solution from another continent
- the one across the Atlantic..
Only problem was there was still German contractors working around on
key bits of the system. I was told that some razoring of the code in
the stored procedures was then done in retribution and eventually the
Heathrow baggage system came to a complete halt.
:-)
Not funny if you are flying via Heathrow.... who knows if it is true
but that is what some in Germany were claiming :-)
Domestically, people in Germany are having other issues with their software..
like in their new cars.. of various known luxury brands...
A new generation of software is coming out in all the embedded devices
within the car...
I was told of one old lady who bumped a flowerpot low down on the
bumper below the sensor. That bumped a wire that damaged some bit with
a computer in it. When the sensor was replaced, it was replaced with a
slightly different version. That caused the main computer to shut down
- necessitating the replacement of the main computer. Total damage
bill came to 3,500 euro ($AU5000) - not because of parts - but because
of software incompatibilities - for bumping a flowerpot. Hardware
component was maybe $20. Car was only worth 9,000 euro.
Another car/software problem I was told about was a guy who had some
problem with his airconditioner.
After several attempts to fix whatever the problem was with the
climate control - he gave up. He got the mechanic to disconnect the a/c.
Only problem was, the service computer dialed into the car-maker and
rejected the modification and decided to shut the car down - rendering
it inoperable. Lucky he was a lawyer and sued - he got a new car - but
normal people are rarely so lucky.
The lesson in these new cars - if something goes wrong - chances are
getting higher that the whole car will need to be replaced.
There is a real push over there to shorten the operating life of cars
to about 3 years (down from about 8 years currently).
Fortunately, in Australia, we don't have any locally owned car
industry. So we don't have to worry about this kind of thing. :-)
It is staggering traveling in Asia and Europe to see how low the
technological bar has been set for Australia ... ok - we are slightly
above africa... but not much..
well ho ho ho - long live the banana republic.....
I'll drink to the the seriousness of the Governance thing...
David
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