Just say it Bill, Windows can't handle it

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/hoaxes/computer.asp

 

I will do that with pleasure

 

What is incredibly sad is that the IRS is still using a system designed in the 80's and they are still using tape back up. Sure it all works, kind of, but look at how quickly computers have come along. If you watch movies such as "Other People's Money" made in 1991 those computers look very ancient to today's computers. We can go further back and look to "War Games" and it is downright scarry .

Makes you wonder how the IRS can work with those machines. Hell if they hire a young 20 something that person will have to have a history lesson on how to use such an old computer LOL.

Alexander

 

Because the amount of data that the IRS has to manage makes NASA look like kiddie play. Sure they run on antiquated systems, but technology as a whole is such a BAD industry as far as design, etc. goes that making a transition of this order will take decades (thereby rendering the upgraded system obsolete).

--Dan

 

Sounds similar to the company I work for! Our computers (for the most part) are pretty up to date, but our software sytems (inventory, accounting, etc etc) are from the jurasic era. seriously, our system was designed a nd implemented 16 years ago! When I started here, it was one of the first thing I recommended! NOPE! we can't do that. "Why"...because was the answer! Amazing! It works, but it's so cumbersome to navigate through things, it's sick!

J

 

Teletype interface and Fortran language?? Does anyone use Fortran anymore??

 

This is more typical than many think.

I guess it just costs too much money to upgrade. Hence why most systems that are still running have an old Unix db somewhere.

And yes I was not aware that Mac OSX is built on Unix. That was a very sound decision ... but I must say in my years in IT I have never come across a system that uses Mac's for anything but dumb terminals.

Mac's are still seen as 'picture' computers in my part of the world. NT's or XP for most office work and Unix for anything that you take seriously. Not saying we are up to date here ... but like I said earlier the role of most IT consultants is playing with old stuff, because nobody is spending the $'s and taking the risks to implement fancy new stuff.

The IT industry can take a lot of responsibility for that itself ... cause 95% of projects run over budget and do not meet the initial requirements. Heck in Sydney ports they implemented a new container system and it brought the docks to a standstill ... thus if you were a CEO would you take that risk?

I would be nervous.
Pete