WorldWide Drilling Resource

. '* # $* )*' ' . )% ! $ "% ) %$ $ " $) )- . %$ () &' $ . , , *()%# ' (*&&%') . ) ) % ) ') # $* )*' $ " )- . * #%' (! -%*' $ ' () ()' *)%' %*) !) *#&( %' "" *( ) . *( ( !) &*#&( %# +++ ( !) &*#&( *( Given Enough Thrust, Pigs Fly Just Fine by Britt Storkson Owner, P2FlowLLC W th suff c ent thrust, p gs f y just f ne. However, th s s not necessar y a good dea. It s hard to be sure where they are go ng to and, and t cou d be dangerous s tt ng under them as they f y overhead. Quoted from: The Twelve Networking Truths Applied to Information Security The above ph osoph ca statement cou d be nterpreted var ous ways, but I th nk what t s say ng s, some projects are s mp y not worth the effort app ed to them because the bas c concept or work ng components s/are f awed or unsu ted for the task at hand. In other words, t s a p g. Sure, w th enough effort, t me, money, b ood, sweat, and tears we m ght get t to work, at east n part. But who wants to waste a of those resources on a p g? I can c te many examp es, but I use my w fe s car as a case study. Her car has a s x-speed automat c transmss on wh ch works f ne except for one th ng: There are t mes when t w not upsh ft out of second gear. Norma y, when one stops, the transm ss on sh fts nto f rst gear, and when acce - erat ng from a stop, the car s computer smooth y upsh fts through the gears, eventua y gett ng nto s xth gear to keep the eng ne RPMs (rev- o ut ons per m nute/motor speed) n the good fue economy range. However, once n a wh e t w refuse to sh ft out of second gear even though the dr v ng cond t ons warrant t. I d scovered th s wh e dr v ng the car and I not ced the eng ne RPMs were unusua y h gh even though we were not go ng very fast down the road. I tr ed manua y sh ft- ng, but noth ng worked to make t upsh ft correct y. F na y, I pu ed over and asked my w fe to et me see the car s owners manua . Sure enough, t conta ned a statement say ng on occas on the car, for no apparent reason, wou d refuse to upsh ft out of second gear. The carmakers so ut on was to turn off the car and turn t back on aga n to “f x” the prob em. I d d th s, and the car returned to norma operat on. Wh e th s was not a prob em n that t d d not affect the safety of the car occupants, t was a prob em n that t shou d not be do ng t. It was a prob- em n that h gh eng ne speeds ncrease wear and tear on the eng ne and reduces fue m eage. Most of a , n my op n on, t was a prob em n that the car dr ver shou d not have to spend t me and effort on someth ng wh ch shou d have been tested for and corrected n the des gn stage ong before they started se ng th s automat c transm ss on. I th nk computers are great, wh ch s one of the reasons I ve been mak- ng them for so ong. But to be a worthwh e nvestment, the computer must re eve the owner/operator of the need to do certa n tasks . . . not add to h s or her st of th ngs to do. When th s happens we, n a sense, become s aves to the computer. The computer s supposed to be a s ave to us, not us to them. Humans are supposed to be occup ed w th “h gher eve ” th ngs a computer cannot do. We don t need to waste our t me “c ean ng up the messes” caused by a poor y des gned and programmed computer. In th s case, f the computer s not go ng to sh ft the gears correct y every t me, then why have t? Wh e the consequences of th s examp e were on y ower fue economy and ncreased eng ne wear, what f th s computer ma funct on presented a safety ssue? What f th s computer was tasked w th a ert ng workers of hazards and, from t me to t me, t d d not do t? Or, perhaps worse, what f the computer generated numerous fa se a arms and then nobody be eved t when a rea hazard was present? One cou d argue, hav ng no computer s better than hav ng one you cannot trust. I spend far more tme test ng my computers and software than I do mak ng them. And th s s the way t shou d be. Test ng s an expens ve and t me- consum ng process, but t s worth t. Th s way I don t end up w th a p g. Britt michele@worldwidedrillingresource.com 40 DECEMBER 2016 WorldWide Drilling Resource ®