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Land Warrior Army Suits Simplified, Linux-ized
Dosco Jones writes 'The Army is drastically simplifying the makeup of its high-tech soldier ensemble, the Land Warrior, in an effort to make the system less prone to failures and easier to use,' National Defense reports. Defense Tech continues: 'After the last version of Land Warrior failed reliability tests earlier this year, the Army switched gears and decided to make the system less complex and modify the hardware to make it compatible with the new [and controversial] Stryker infantry vehicle. Changes include a more simplified data bus and a Linux-based operating system, as opposed to Windows. 'Evidence shows that Linux is more stable. We are moving in general to where the Army is going, to Linux-based OS', says the program's manager, Lt. Col. Dave Gallop."
Evidence shows that Linux is more stable
I'm sure they'll be hearing from Commander Gates about that one shortly...
-insert a witty something-
Each fighter would get equipped with a small, 500 megahertz computer running Windows 2000...
"Although it has been much improved over earlier prototypes, the system was deemed 'unreliable' and unlikely to survive the rigors of combat," National Defense says.
The thought of Windows even being considered for such a mission critical application (i.e. keeping our boys alive) scares the bejeezus out of me... kinda brings a new meaning to "blue screen of death".
Imagine getting a blaster style worm while your fighting.
The cost of war just went up by $699
This is exactly the sort of project that we geeks should build on an open sourced Linux based platform. The US military hogs all of the good technology, and poor countries are denied the ability to improve their armed forces because of proprietary technology.
So, who's going to start the GNU Land Warrior project?
Good. I'm glad to see that the world is becoming more Linuxy.
Frankly, I can't think of a single thing for which Windows is good. Linux is better for everything.
The Marines are going to run FreeBSD, because linux just isn't tough enough.
Fatal error : Could not find gunfile.dll. Please reboot your soldier. now it will be : YOU! STOP, OR I'LL SEND YOU TO /DEV/NULL/.
"Unfortunately for OS stability, we are required to dress up in tuxedos and wear red hats"
Sorry but the Middle Ages have ended.
Get a FREE Sony PS3
With a name like that, it was bound to fail!
-------
Warning: Slashdot may contain traces of nuts.
when you die, does your uptime go to 0?
"The enemy is approaching. Fire away!"
"I can't, sir... There's no compatible driver for this missile launcher yet!"
I recommend downgrading all versions of Soldier to the basic "naked man with stick" functionality which was immensely popular and robust for a good portion of the version history of Soldier. There'd be a lot less problems in the long run, as long as all users comply with the downgrade.
Freedom: "I won't!"
Kind of messy in the midst of combat, having to phone Micro$oft with a soldier's product activation information, so that might be one of the reasons why the Linux choice.
Then they have the gall to whine about the enemy using "unconventional" tactics against them. What a bunch of cry babies. Grow up US Army et al
I'm sure there will be "experts" for the other side saying otherwise. I would have loved for him to back this up with some datea. Not that I (or most of the /. crowd need that).
I guess ARMY $$$ should be enough "data" for others.
GO ARMY!
...it's all made by the lowest bidder. And by that criterion, Linux is the clear choice.
The Army has failed.
One thing that nobody's managed to explain to me is how your average 11 Bravo is expected to carry an extra fifty-odd pounds of electronics.
Land Warrior? I'd settle for a fucking infantry boot that wasn't the height of 1950's technology.
I having been in the Army, for one am glad that linux has been chosen. Not that I will ever have to face combat, but it just would be to cruel to have these guys see the "blue screen of death" just before they actually die from a software memory leak or some other problem. Just as soon as it happened it would also make referring to the blue screen a whole lot less funny.
"Want to reduce the budget deficeit? We're switching to linux!"
I can just picture a bunch of pimply faced geeks with thick glasses joining the military to use super cool linux gadget.
So if the Army can pay $hitloads for a bunch of bolts, SCO must be positively drooling for what they can get out of the Army for a Linux licence.
W9x:Thanks for the make-work project Bill.
The people with swords killed the people without swords.
The people with horses killed the people without horses.
The people with guns killed the people without guns.
The people with missiles kill the people without missiles.
...do you think the government will work to thwart SCO's suit?
Insightful: 76, Off-Topic: 379, Flamebait: 24, Funny: 152, Interesting: 201, Underrated: 55, Troll: 9, Total: 896
"Il faut rendre a Cesar ce qui appartient a Cesar"
Linux is not popular, Windows is on 90% of machines. Windows is "unstable", Linux is pretty solid. I'm an avid Windows fan but i feel better knowing military grade uses Linux on the field. Who needs DirectX in combat anyway? Quake isn't considered combat tututut hehe
Trolls dont like to be Flamebait, because they burn so well. Protect our Troll heritage!
I thought it was all made by people who had friends in the Whitehouse.
Sadly, we run Windows NT. We'd also never get expensive crap like a warrior suit... hell, my deuce-gear was first issued in 1964 according to the supply ticket.
Sure, we got the cool new camouflague that makes us look like the Waffen SS, but as far as cool crap like this, we have to wait 5 years for the Army to get tired of playing with it.
All's true that is mistrusted
The whole idea is to make the fight as unfair as possible in your favor. That way you tend to limit your casulties as well as civilian casulties....
Are you sure it shouldn't be 'arctic sea warriors'?
I just don't know why they didn't pick FreeBSD, though. A bunch of Daemons running around with M16A2s and P90s would be a lot more fearsome to whoever the US is planning to invade next! *cough*
So which knoppix are they using for this project?
And are you sure they're not talking about America's Army on a bootable linux cd?
whatch someone do ln -sf /dev/rocket /dev/boomerang
The Army chooses Linux to build the soldier of the future but the Department of Homeland Security chooses Windows. Maybe the Army can protect us from the Department of Homeland Security!
No trees were harmed in the composition of this; however, numerous electrons were inconvenienced.
Speech like that weakens Windows, which weakens the economy and cuts down on campaign contributions to GOP causes. W and the "Justice" Department will be having Gallop arrested as an obvious enemy combatant any second now.
More stable. Like that's so important. It hasn't mattered to Windows for years!
Everyone knows that they are just covering up the fact that they couldn't afford to buy a REAL OS, you know, with the lack of funding the U.S. army gets and all.
Nobody uses Linux for an other reason than its cost, which is actually more than Windows when you take in account its TCO cause windows has all those neat add ons that make life more productive, like clippy.
Sdelat' Ameriku velikoy Snova!
"The minesweeper simulation did not seem to adequately train our engineers"
I'm not sure this is the kind of press Linux should be getting, worldwide. The negative impact feels it could be enormous - will the US army restrict parts of the software they use or not?
Isn't there something in the GPL to prevent offensive attack uses of software?
An endorsement from someone that depends on a system's stability and durability for his life is impressive.
Even if this Lieutenant Colonel won't get involved in the shooting personally, the chance of having to deal with some very angry, very well armed soldiers fresh from losing a buddy has to be a heck of a motivator to get it right.
This can only be a good thing for Linux and for desk bound Cheetos munching Linux newbies like me. We might get more lethal soldiers and a better OS. I like it.
Why do I have this? I don't smoke.
Now Linux can be used to help murder people.
I'll let other /.ers discuss the reliability of Linux over Windows, but an interesting note is that the original LW had 2 processors but the newer version has 1. The question is whether part of the reliability issues on 2 processors is due to Windows handling multiprocessors or simply the hassles of getting 2 processors to work together. The articles do not discuss in detail what really happened. Simplicity is however a good thing when it comes to reliability. It would be something if the stuck with a 2 processor design but made it work with Linux.
Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
But I guess I'm going to have to go ahead and write my own. As soon as Motorola's HC08 chips support ZigBee networking I'm going to be deploying a paintball tactical network.
Then it's time to build the automated 20-oz paintball mortar. Let's see you wipe THAT off when no one's looking!
Lindows, of course.
United States of America, good ol' backers of world peace.
> kill people with missles on donkeys looking like storm troopers
The word is "missiles"
"You have loaded new ammo in your gun -- Please contact Microsoft for a new activation key."
BSD is designed. Linux is grown. C++ libs
The Military Analysis Network has a more complete description of the Landwarrior's various subsystems. Sounds like you would need a very stable OS to handle all the communications, geographic, thermal imaging, and directional software it must be running.
Well I guess this contradicts Mr. Balmers comments about windows being better because there was someones job at stake. It seems when its a life at stake its time to pick linux.
I dunno about the other variants, but the Command and Control vehicle has wonderfully efficient AC. Ofcourse the MGS can't fire its cannon while it's abeam, it'll just knock itself over from the recoil... Also, in direct reference to the RPG culnerability comment, they're all being equipped with reactive armor upgrade packs to help defeat those, and other, larger threats.
Just take a look at it, big rubber air filled tires, can't track/hit targets while moving, weak armor and once again, tires are not a good idea. Our primary concern on the battlefield these days is 5.56 and 7.62 small arms (AK-47 and clones), and the all too common RPG. You would think that the Stryker would take that into account. It would take a much heavier vehicle to stand up to RPG attacks, and a lot more money to provide the ability to hit moving targets reliably (whats on the Stryker, a 20mm and a 14?). Humvees are a joke in that situation, M1s are too expensive and heavy, the middle ground is tricky.
TallGreen CMS hosting
The word is pronounces "miss-ile" but is spellt "missle" moron
to conquer the world. Imagine beowulf of marching Penguins, armed to their teeth ...
I agree. I guess some moderators are going 'patriotic' on your ass for your simple honesty. The fact that their own soldiers can and will die gives politicians (who otherwise have proven to not care) a real aversion towards war of any kind. (and THERE IS NO GOOD KIND OF WAR)
Now they want to sanitize things as much as possible. One things for sure, you won't hear how many civilians and enemy soldiers were killed until well after the war is over.. We're still hearing new things about the vietnam war.
But many of our soldiers have died because they're given vietnam-era body armor, and not the newest kind that uses ceramic plates. The old type can't stop an bullet from an AK-47.
Stryker info
And, of course:
Stryper info
A separate control device attached to the rifle lets the shooter manipulate the system without taking his hands off of the gun. One button, for example, activates voice communications, or calls up maps on the helmet-mounted display. Another button captures images, saves them and transmits them to a commander
The Windows OS is wedded to the Windows User Interface; there is no abstraction (as with X Windows) of the user interface from the OS. This makes so much sense.
sources claim seeing Al Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden joining forces with The SCO group
Steve: "Bill, we have a problem. It appears that not only are second world countries and small states switching to linux. The US Army is beginning to use linux in its new systems." A nervous Steve mentions.
:) ]
Shocked, Bill replies "Enough of this. Its time to begin Operation Rotanimret! Is everything in place?"
Steve: "Yes, the worms are ready. The submarines are still running WindowsCE, and the governator of Califorenia is backing us up."
Bill: "Excellent! Release the worm immediately. Something tells me this patch won't make it to the update servers any time soon." Bill says ending with an evil "Muhahahahaaa!"
Steve, now sweaty under the arms reads from an emergency plan: "We had better leave immediately to the bunker. Our estimates show that we will have total control over every windows PC in the world in under 4 hours. Beginning 2 hours from now, the distruction of non-windows pc's will begin."
Bill: Excelent. To the SUV then!
-- Bill and Steve are on the road heading to thier secret underground bunker ---
Bill: Do you remember where the bunker was?
Steve: Not exactly.. I never drive anywhere myself anymore. I'm pretty sure its in this direction though. I'll just ask the car... AutoPC show me a map to the secret underground bunker.
--BSOD--
Bill: Damn. At least this isn't a drive-by-wire SUV. We'd really be in trouble. Give it a second to reboot.
Bill: AutoPC show me a map to the underground bunker.
--Map displayed showing bunker is behind them--
Bill: Darn steve, we have to turn around. Its showing that we passed the bunker.
--Steve turns around and begins following the map--
Steve: Well, here we are. It must be under this penguin factory.
Bill: Wow.. good idea. Whoever hid the secret lair under a penguin factory needs to get a bonus if they survive the nuclear winter we are about to unleash.. in 20 minutes, we need to hurry! Pull in over there.
Steve: Ok. we're here. What the--- Bill, why is your face on the dashboard map?
Bill: Don't know.
AutoPC: Thank you for using AutoPC. This vehicle is being sacrificed to destroy the linux tyrany. Have a nice day!
Bill and Steve look at each other
--Car explodes outside the penguin factory--
[to be continued!]
[feel free to continue
Karma: SELECT `karma` FROM `users` WHERE `userid`=138474;
Think SCO will send them a nasty-gram about paying for the license?
In other news, Steve Ballmer has just flown to the Pentagon offering to give the Armed Forces a price match for Windows licenses compared to the less expensive (read free), more stable, GNU/Linux Competitor.
Steve Ballmer was allegedly overheard saying, "And if that doesn't work, I'll write them a check to use my !^$&$@ software. Give me that M-16 son, I want to put a bullet in the head of that penguin."
It's called "overwhelming force."
Buy Steampunk Clothing Online!
Oh yeah, didn't see that one comming.
The thought of Windows even being considered for such a mission critical application (i.e. keeping our boys alive) scares the bejeezus out of me... kinda brings a new meaning to "blue screen of death".
;).
Like it or not, Windows does run lots of mission critical applications, the NT line always did. Maybe not as life-threateningly critical as this, but still. That they consider it is natural, and that the reject it shows that the system works!
How many other operating systems would be under consideration? Not many, that's for sure. Rolling their own is probably too expensive, and commercial Unixes are mostly designed for big iron machines. Embedded OSs were probably too limited.
And while the army is using Linux already, I'm sure it doesn't go without question entrusting vital systems to an OS that doesn't have a corporation like Microsoft. Hell, maybe they even read some of the "Linux is communist" trolls on slashdot
They're learning through experience. Best way really, because you and me both know that getting a high quality OS for free sounds too good to be true. Where else than in OSS land do you get anything for basicly nothing? Flea markets, soup kitchens, what other people want to throw away. While they may "work", you don't expect to get gourmet meals or brand new furniture and state-of-the-art electronics. I don't blame non-tech people like PHBs (or even techies that haven't tried Linux) for finding it hard to believe.
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
Commander Gates - wasn't he in Halo?
Linux is all very well, but if you want auto-aim and stuff to really piss the opposition off, I'd go into battle with an X-box strapped on my back.
You can see the Pentagon news briefs; "we can't fight Al Qaeda because they haven't subscribed to X-box Live..."
I know Linux is stable as a rock on my machines, but for something that lives depend on I'd expect more than a monolithic kernel. QNX is the only company that's confident enough in its OS to let it be used in life-threatening situations, so why not use it here? It can't be that it's Canadian, can it?
boldly going forward, 'cause we can't find reverse
If there is a GPL violation, I'd like to see the GPL get enforced.
"National Security" will trump the GPL....and no code release.
A real live troll!!! :/
No unauthorized use. Trespassers will be shot. Survivors will be shot again.
flossie
Write now. Defend liberty
So, who's going to start the GNU Land Warrior project?
It's already under way.
Or at least the first module (mine detection/clearing) has been a pet project of a number of hackers (starting with John Walker) for quite a few years now. (Since well before the late Princess Di got on the band wagon.)
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
dude you're a tard. It is spelled missile.
Dictionary.com --> No entry found for missle.
missile
An object or weapon that is fired, thrown, dropped, or otherwise projected at a target; a projectile.
A guided missile.
A ballistic missile.
Furthermore, spellt is not a word.
Dictionary.com --> No entry found for spellt.
alias dir='rm -rf
So open source will be responsible for creating open sores?
The Truth About the Kursk Disaster
... A CD-ROM drive and that it needs drivers.
Some new information has come to light over the Kursk disaster. For those with short attention spans, the Kursk was the submarine that blew up and sank in the Artic Ocean killing all 118 on board. The Russians tried to blame the incident on a collision with an unidentified object. However, sonar tapes which recorded the blasts (a small one at first, then a much larger one two minutes later) cast doubt on these claims. A whistle blower within the Russian military has leaked that the crew of the Kursk was testing a new type of torpedo when the accident occured. It seemed very likely that the test didn't go quite as planned.
While rescue efforts to save the survivors of the Kursk failed, salvage crews were able to recover a 'Black Box' from the submarine which contained detailed accounts of the events leading up to the explosion. As luck would have it, we got a copy of those tapes.
It turns out that the submarine crew was trying to load Microsoft Windows on their fire control computer. Their intent was to replace the aging CP/M operating system with the flashier Windows OS. Apparently, the Russians didn't know about the legendary stability problems exhibited by Windows. The log tapes make this painfully obvious:
Captain: Is the new fire control Windows OS installed yet Comrade?
Seaman: Almost Sir. We just need to finish filling out the registration card.
Captain: Excellent. Soon we will be able to point and click our enemies into oblivian.
[evil laughter in background]
Seaman: Comrade Captain! It is booting! Look, it says "Preparing to run Windows for the first time".
[long pause]
Seaman: Arrgh! Sir, it wants me to reboot again. That makes the 27th time.
Captain: Hmmm. This is not encouraging. Go ahead and reboot again.
Seaman: Aye Sir.
[another long pause]
Seaman: Captain, it is up again. It says it found new hardware
Captain: Where are the drivers?
Seaman: On the CD-ROM.
Captain: You are joking, right?
Seaman: No Sir.
Captain: Reboot the damn thing again. I am starting not to like this Windows.
[another long pause]
Seaman: Sir! It is back! It says it found the Gorby2000 Torpedo and is looking for the device drivers. Do we have a driver disk?
Captain: I do not think so.
Seaman: I will tell it to use the default drivers.
[another long pause]
Seaman: Crap. It wants to reboot again.
Captain: How many times are we going to reboot today? This is taking forever. Our hull is going to rust out before this works.
[another long pause]
Seaman: Sir! It is up and this time it is not asking for anything!
Captain: Really? No device drivers? No registration cards? No user profiles?
Seaman: No Sir. I think it is ready.
Captain: Good work comrade. Now click on the fire control icon and let us see how this works.
Seaman: Clicking now, Sir.
[another long pause]
Captain: Why does the fire control screen have a dancing paper clip on it?
Seaman: I have no idea Sir.
Captain: Hmmm, well try clicking on the menu.
Seaman: Aye Sir. Let us see; Open E-mail, Spam a friend, Mail a Virus, Fire a Torpedo.
Captain: We will spam a friend later. Let us fire a torpedo.
Seaman: Aye Sir.
[another long pause]
Seaman: It is asking us to load the torpedo and to click when ready.
Captain: Torpedo room, load a torpedo in tube number 1!
[intercom:] This is the Torpedo room. The torpedo is loaded Sir.
Captain: Click on the continue button.
Seaman: Aye Sir.
[another long pause]
Seaman: It is asking for a target Sir.
Captain: Hmmm, target the Rainbow Warrior.
Seaman: Aye Sir. Damn! It says the torpedo is low on ink.
Captain: Click ignore. We will get some ink when we return to base.
Seaman: Aye Sir. We are ready to fire.
Captain: Very good. You may fire when ready comrade.
Seaman: Firing torpe
When all else fails, run.
Hmmm. Instead of thinking that MS bought it's way into the US Military, I think it's important to remember that it has existed for over two hundred years while Linux is little more than two decades old.
So back in the 80's when the military was getting all wizbang there were two general desktop options: Sun and MS. In the end it turned out that the MS boxes were cheaper in bulk and so primary development occured on them.
Fast forward to the present day and you have the current situation: a monolithic organization bound tight to proprietary software. I'm glad to see the Army guys proving that some steering can still be done to the whole thing.
Just think if Sun boxes were cheaper back then, it would mean that the US Armed Forces would've been primed for a cheaper option Unix-like OS...
What is music when you despise all sound?
exactly. What kind of person would send our military into battle with nothing but the best? Each time there is a conflict must the President meet with his peepz and strategize which weapons they were going to take into battle? Dude, you are all tards if you think otherwise.
Think about this...... Let's say there is a draft again and you are one of the unfortunate ones that is drafted. Would you want the military to send you into battle with a *BFG* or a slingshot and some pebbles? For me I would want at least 2 *BFG's*.
alias dir='rm -rf
How about enlisting in the military and let them send you to Iraq to protect the nation. Rather than providing you with the best weapon available, we will drop you in the middle of the battle field with a pair of plastic scissors to defend yourself. How does that sound?
Anyone got links to info on instances where Windows has failed the military? I recall something about a cruiser run on Windows that had to be towed back to port because everything shut down.
The army's been very good about its transformation plan. In case some /. readers haven't heard it in its full glory, here it is:
OK, pre-9/11, the Army embarked on a very controversial plan. Basically, they looked at all the wars that we have any realistic chance of being in. Then they looked at what we have to fight them.
The problem was this: we have oodles of heavy tanks, which pretty much kick all kinds of ass. But they can only win where they can be brought to bear. They're so heavy that they require massive transportation time and cost (not to mention a friendly port to set up in). Another problem is that while tracked vehicles can be heavier and go places that wheeled vehicles can't, they are very maintenance intensive. They need lots of fuel and spare parts, which requires still more ships or a massive airlift.
Bottom line: unless we're fighting on the Korean penninsula or in Europe, where were pre-positioned, it would take six months to fight a war anywhere, and that's assuming we had a friendly neighbor to give us a place to set up in.
The result was the Army transformation plan. The idea is that they would get phase out most of their heavy tank divisions, and replace them with smaller, modular formations called Brigade Combat Teams. The BCT's job would be this: assuming the Air Force can clear a drop zone, we ought to be able to put a brigade anywhere in the world, opposed or not, within 96 hours of the President saying so. Four brigades within 14 days, and more (I don't remember how many) within 90 days. That's even if we drop in the middle of a shooting enemy.
One way we could do this was to get a vehicle that could be a little less armed and armored, and could be a little less mobile, but MUST be air-transportable. That's the Stryker. Think of it (excuse the roleplaying reference) as an Omnimech: a vehicle that is designed to be reconfigurable to do lots of different missions. So there's a communications loadout, and a tank-killer loadout and an infantry-carrier loadout, and lots more.
Post 9/11 lessons have been mixed. On one hand, invincible tanks in Germany did us absolutely no good when we suddenly found ourselves at war in Afghanistan. On the other, when we had a year to move them to Iraq, our tanks did extremely well-- and as DefenseTech points out, absorbs fire that would have destroyed Strykers. The gripping hand is that long occupations like Iraq are better suited to Strykers, LAV's or armored Hummers than to heavy tanks and APC's.
So, like most things, one tech isn't necessarily better or worse than another. You use whatever best fits the situation you're in. On that basis, I like the Stryker. An all-Stryker Army? No. But it is a very valuable program.
Most American war plans in the 90's were built around the idea of a set-piece conflict with an adversary (like China, Iraq or North Korea) that while not exactly equal in technology was at least comparable. 9/11 proved that asymmetrical conflicts would also happen: conflicts where the enemy's main goal is to demoralize our political leadership because they can't defeat us militarily.
And in those cases, we can't count on someone granting us entry, we may need to move very fast, and it might be in some remote corner of the world, far from our forces.
Related to that is improved command and control. Many of our casualties in the Gulf War were friendly-fire, so the Army worked on reducing that, too. Vehicles can now see on a map where others in their unit are (just like in a first-person shooter like BF1942). The problem is that the equipment is still too heavy and battery-draining to be useful for infantry. Hopefully, a vehicle-run 'subnet' can help alleviate this. And running it w/ Linux will hopefully improve efficiency and reliability.
Overall, I think the Army's on the right track with this. I'd hate to lose our heavy tank divisions-- those come in mighty handy. But a less powerful force that can actually get to the battle is better than an invincible juggernaut that is stranded somewhere else.
Government programs take too long to acuqire - 4-8 years for a system like that.
meaning that by the time they actually wanted to start building the and fielding them, they couldn't buy the PIII-500's that they had speced/tested any more.
this is a constant issue with military programs being built on COTS. For example - the DSP farms of XServes going on the subs are already obsolete - they could have used half as many G5's to do it.
If someone wanted to change the face of military program development, come up with a way to NOT have to specify crucial parts until the very minute you went into production. Or at least make it so that you can move into the latest versions before you go into production.
We had a bitch of a time 6 years ago replacing some computers in a Air Force program.. it was impossible to find anyone to make us 286 machines.
guns kill people like spoons make Rosie O'Donnell fat.
Ever tried xneko?
GAAH! MY PRINTER IS ON FIRE!!! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!
All comments about the Stryker aside, maybe the Army's trying to learn something from the Navy. I'd like to think that leaving the cruiser USS Yorktown dead in the water for 2 1/2 hours due to a divide by zero error would motivate a switch from microsoft to something more robust. I'd also like to think asses of the dimbulbs in charge are still smarting from the cornholing courtmartial they received, but they probably got promoted instead.
http://militaryphoto.com/Stryker%20Catalog/stryker .html
The Fat Man Walks Alone
warrior@jungle $ top -n1 | grep saddam 1 intruder 8 0 488 488 436 S 0.0 0.1 0:04.20 saddam $ telnet '... cool ip lookup' win2k> dir Program has encountered an internal error and will format c:\ to be sure. Reinstall! And Bush got relected. See, windows is truly ebil.
If window crashes, you reboot, and then it's fixed. This happens fairly often, once a week or so.
If XFree86 crashes, your entire computer freezes up and you have to ssh into the box to X11 it (alt. reboot). This happens like once every 5 years. But still, it is quite some mess to get youself out of, especially when you're fighting a war.
GAAH! MY PRINTER IS ON FIRE!!! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!
better yet, a plastic spoon.
If they'd left it under Windows, can you imagine what some of the Land Warrior messages would be?
"You appear to be shooting a building. Would you like some assistance?"
"You have moved out of your designated combat zone. Please re-authenticate before continuing."
"Error: Order for airstrike not understood. Auto-correcting to airstrip. Construction team has been despached.
"Local radio broacast is incompatible with wireless systems. Please reconfigure before attempting contact with Command & Control."
"Critical Security Alert #25: system may be hacked by outside forces by sending a basic script through the Active Directory port. A patch will be available shortly."
Here's hoping they have a bit more sense this time around.
"Why this next generation with be any more reliable than the first is unclear."
http://www.defensetech.org/archives/000487.html
stupid linux kiddies
If this wasn't Slashdot, it would probably be something like "Linux Now Bring Used To Kill More People Than Windows".
[note to mods: THIS IS FUNNY]
Honorary Member of Jackie Chan's Kung Fu Process Servers
The Army does use SCO for a bunch of her computer systems, like for Field Artillery fire direction. It's kind of fun to watch people discover that backspace and delete aren't what they're used to.
There are a bunch of pics of this new vehicle available:
Here
Here, and
Here.
Personally, I think it's got nothin' on the V.A.M.P.!
Well, this is certainly one way to shave billions off of the defense budget.
:-)
With the money they've saved on software, the Air Force can probably buy another B1.
More info about the new and controversial infantry vehicle Stryker is available here and here. Here are two nice videos of the Stryker in action.
Do you hear it? The sound of Bill Gates shitting a brick.
Ah! And there's the sound of him calling Ballmer to go find this Lt. Col. Dave Gallop and show him some 'innovation'!
- I am made of meat.
I can't wait to see the most powerful Beowulf cluster ever in action!
Now it will just take a 2 month training course to learn how to compile your GPS software, and an additional 3 weeks of reading manpages to learn how to fire your weapon!
code wasn't enough for you? They started out w/ a windows based system, if they're basically starting over i would assume it wouldn't be the easiest thing in the world to port all their existing thigns over, a few choice quotes
"The idea is for members of a platoon to be able to pass around battlefield procedural messages, graphics, alerts and other pieces of information that currently are communicated by hand signals and voice"
that seems to imply quite a bit of custom software
as does this: "The Land Warrior operates in a soldier-to-soldier wireless network, for short-range data and voice transmissions. For extended communications, the CDA is connected to a SINCGARS ASIP radio. Other radios may be incorporated in the future, such as the MBITR, the PRC-117F or L-band and Iridium satellite systems."
yea the mechanics might not be difficult to port over but what about all their GUI stuff? and/or having to write drivers for hardware that might not yet be supported etc? i mean it takes a pretty big investment to scrap it and start over... and switching operating systems midstream is very very telling.
I wonder if longhorn and winfx could have changed this (i doubt it).
If i where Linus i would'nt allow my software used for warfare.
WinXP is fairly stable, but I'd hate to imagine what would happen if in the middle of your first combat it asked you "Would you like to add your .Net Passport to this suit?"
Does it make you happy you're so strange?
This "spell checking" attack of yours seems
effective. It might become popular. Keep
it up.
Linux doesn't kill people...
So I've got a question... Does the government release the source for what they're doing? When the modifications made to the source are pivotal to "national security," could the government potentially violate the GPL and attribute it to the greater good of the nation?
How about this... how would any civilian even know they're violating the GPL? Access to these computers would presumably pretty tight. Just something to ponder over...
Every computer seams to be infected whtih something. (No I don't mean fool prof) One of ther coputers was dysplaying pron adds it had a scrach to win thing. That would probly be the worst I've seen so far.
i for one welcome our new linux-based cyborg overlords.
Investing forum
...that you are going to find a Linux tech in the middle of a warzone to fix your probs? We in the military can't even get users to understand Winblows. Can't wait until we have to start explaining about mounting drives and bash shells and telnet. But hey - all they have to do is make it completely idiot proof, secure, crash proof, easy to setup, easy to upgrade, and easier to kill people with. No problem.
"Trying is only the first step towards failure." - Homer
aaaaaauuuuuugggghhhhh!!
The DRM in windows could have prevented soldiers from shooting their guns. I'm sure in Windows Soldier XP, you're only allowed to shoot yourself, and not the enemy due to licencing restrictions.
RingTFA, and followed a couple of Stryker links, right into:
Gotta hate those VBScript errors during a fire-fight.
"Talk minus action equals nothing" - Joey Shithead, D.O.A.
"Talk minus action equals
Libel...honestly. _-_
Stories about Baby-killing machines are sick.
Could weapons be given their own catagory so they can be shut-off?
This story doesn't make sense. Win2K for a personal system? Why not WinCE or Palm, or any of a number of RT OSs? I doubt the orignal system was using Win2K. Not sure why a new version would use Linux. Seems to me a firmware solution makes more sense. I can tell you SINCGARS certainly doesn't run Win* or *nix. Why would the soldier system?
Imagine how much harder physics would be if electrons had feelings! -Feynman, maybe
Although I think PBS cut it to ribbons.
This reminds me of an episode of Calvin and Hobbes where ole' Spiff almost doesn't make it.
...the real advantage to using Linux as opposed to Windows in this instance is the ability to strip the OS down to the bare essentials required to accomplish the mission.
Windows is the kind of OS where cramming in as many features as possible is more important than many other things. Hence, this system running Windows is likely hogging up cycles and draining battery performing tasks that aren't needed or even wanted in a battlefield.
But with Linux you can strip it down so that every cycle is a neccessary one. Plus the NSA has plenty of experience hardening the kernel per it's whimsy.
The Military has experience fielding unix in ground combat systems. It's been proven time and again in combat. A Linux solution (or an embedded linux solution) allows the Army to customize even the very low levels of the software in addition to the legendary reliability it enjoys in other systems.
Windows has neither of those things and frankly is not suited to an environment where taking time to patch the OS or troubleshoot could cost you your life.
"Let him go, Ralph. He knows what he's doing." --Otto Mann (simpsons)
When You Don't Use Linux. People Die.
What if the bad guys own a HERF gun?
Then write one yourself, private!!
Computer Go: Writing Software to Play the Ancient Game of Go
Ok, I'm giving Tom a little too much credit. I'm sure it didn't take the Chinese long to figure out for themselves that dependence on foreign suppliers for strategic goods like an OS was a Bad Thing. Too bad. ;-)
Luke, help me take this mask off
Gentoo: they would have the best weapons platform imaginable, but it would be functional only 1 week every month, the rest of the time would be spent compiling
Debian: they would have the most stable / reliable system, however instead of being compatible with Stryker, it would only be compatible with a WW2 Sherman, as this is the only piece of machinery certified as stable
Red Hat: they would have a fine piece of equipment, until they tried upgrading, then realised they also needed to upgrade their helmets. Upon upgrading their helmets they would realise that the new helmets would not work with their rifles. Upon upgrading rifles they realise that the new rifles are a version too high for their computers.
LFS: Each soldier must get a university degree in computer science before being allowed near the equipment.
GNU / Hurd: Soldier: "FIRE" Computer: "I cannot until you say GNU/Fire" Soldier: "OK, GNU/Fire at the enemy behind the building" Computer: "I cannot until you GNU/say GNU/Fire at GNU/the GNU/enemy behind GNU/the GNU/building...GNU"
I am Monkey, the Great Sage, equal of heaven!
eastern flank in Korean War,
I Corps in Vietnam,
Afghanistan,
southern Iraq.
I think there are a couple of reasons for this. For one, the Army brass is focused on strategies based on heavy armored columns. They do this well, and it needs to be done, but as a result, their unit level tatics don't exercise the kind of flexibility that is core to Marine unit doctrine.
Two, the Army has to rely on the Air Force for close air support. The AF doesn't like to do CAS, figuring that's artillery's job. Marine aviation's reason to exist is CAS. The pilots trade off stints as forward air controllers on the front line.
Technologically, the USMC tends to hold off on the sexy hardware unless it provides a blindingly obvious force multiplier for the buck. Ergo, they stick with Cobra gunships instead of Apaches, but were all over Harriers from the get go. They're not going to commit to something like Land Warrior until hauling around all of that extra shit provides the kind of advantage that body armor does.
Luke, help me take this mask off
The Army has an extensive selection process for new weapons, and they have stayed with the M16 series for 35 years now-- had something that better fits the needs of the troops and logistical requirements come along in the interim, you can bet that DoD would be using it. Developments in the 1980s with lasers and caseless ammunition (e.g. the HK G11 rifle) failed to improve on the performance of the M16 series, and DoD has continued to procure the M16 and more recently the M4 Carbine (a popular shortened version of the M16 issued to officers, tank crews, and troops other than front line riflemen). The current manufacturer of the M16 is FN Herstal in Belgium, and Colt is the manufacturer of the M4 Carbine. Both pieces are high-quality compared to a lot of junk in the private market. There are any number of manufacturers of M16/AR-15-type rifles, but Colt consistently brings the highest prices in private sales-- "if it's not a Colt, it's just a copy," as they say. While it is certainly possible to buy a better-quality AR-15 from a custom manufacturer, the Colt/FN combination offers DoD the best balance of cost, quality, and production capacity. There are developments under way now that may limit the useful life of currently issued weapons, but every rifle the DoD issues is designed to serve for many years in many sets of hands, with parts being replaced as needed. Check out your local Army surplus store and you'll see all manner of accessories, uniforms, and equipment that the DoD issues to its troops-- most of the *officially issued* stuff is high quality, while the aftermarket knockoffs are junk. You might be surprised at what gets issued...the Soldier Systems Center recently added the Vietnam-style Tomahawk to the Army infantryman's basic load.
DARPA is working on this now!
The military has a habit of selling some current equipment to allies and older obsolete equipment to just about anyone, including select civilians. WWI Springfield and WWII Garand rifles are sold to some civilians after a background check or two. Of course by the time the land warrior's rifle becomes obsolete the political environment will probably have put an end to this practice. If not, that service rifle tournament shooter buying a rifle from the Army might be able to ask for source code.
SOLDIER1: Gosh, they're attacking! I better activate my Linux armor (armour for UK soldiers).Armor fails to activate.
SOLDIER1: Oh my god, I have no armor!
SOLDIER2: You did compile armor into your kernel, didn't you?
SOLDIER1: Colonel? Huh?
SOLDIER2: No, your Kernel you stupid ass newbie! You obviously suck, go die!
SOLDIER1: Huh?
SOLDIER2: Why don't you RTFM, ass-face?
SOLDIER1: Huh?
SOLDIER2: At least insert a module! Crap, you're stupid!
SOLDIER1: I'm outta here! Runs away from approaching Baddies.
SOLDIER2: Uh... Oh Crap! Help! Help!
It turns out that the L33T HAX0R SOLDIER2 is too fat to flee, is beaten to death by a 90 year old weilding a large salami.
"Would it kill you to put down the toilet seat?" -- Maya Angelou
Is an augmented reality display that'll show friendlies with green names over their heads, and enemies with red ones ^.^
Drill Instructor: "This is the seven inch combat knife, affectionately known as the KABAR. It has zero electronics and zero moving parts. It is the most reliable weapon you will every carry."
Guys, it ain't the OS. Environmental, maintenance, electronic, and embedded application issues are far more likely to cause problems. The OS issue may be a red herring. The article seems to indicate that the original Land Warrior dual CPU hardware was flaky and is being replaced by a piece of hardware from a different project with a single CPU, simplified bus, and is already running Linux. It's not clear if WinNT is really to blame. Recall the initial speculation regarding the Navy's USS Yorktown incident. Many gleefully blamed WinNT, eventually folks talked to the Chief Engineer on board at the time and the actual software developer and found out that it was not WinNT, it was a debug version of application software that was at fault.
Personally, I'd wager that Linux was simply a better fit (size, overhead) for the "other" embedded application. Or maybe the team was more experience with Unix than Windows. Switching the Land Warrior over to Linux to maintain commonality with other systems would justify the change as well.
... NT may or may not have been responsible for crippling one of those cruisers back in 98 or 99 ...
h tml
It turned out to be "not". After printing all the early speculation by shoreside Unix advocates someone eventually talked to the Chief Engineer on board at the time and the software developer who wrote the code. They said it was not WinNT. If the OS had been Linux the ship would have been just as dead in the water after having a server app corrupt it's database and client apps trying to use the incorrect data. In any case:
http://www.sciam.com/1998/1198issue/1198techbus2.
"Others insist that NT was not the culprit. According to Lieutenant Commander Roderick Fraser, who was the chief engineer on board the ship at the time of the incident, the fault was with certain applications that were developed by CAE Electronics in Leesburg, Va. As Harvey McKelvey, former director of navy programs for CAE, admits, "If you want to put a stick in anybody's eye, it should be in ours." But McKelvey adds that the crash would not have happened if the navy had been using a production version of the CAE software, which he asserts has safeguards to prevent the type of failure that occurred."
"Overly Critical Guy"
8)
Cheers
Stor
"Yeah well there's a lot of stuff that should be, but isn't"
Luckily, there is a lively aftermarket in certain weapons such as the AK. It appears that some american units are reissuing the captured equipment to ensure their soldiers are armed.
The AK47 may not be very accurate over a distance, but it is easily serviceable even under bad conditions (i.e., sand) doesn't jam. Sometimes low-tech is a good idea.
See my journal, I write things there
that's what anyone who wants to view the American Army's source code for Linux will become. If you think SCO is a threat to the uninforceability of the GPL, can you imagine the FSF going to the US army and telling them to release the source!
Never underestimate the dark side of the Source
I wonder what the political ties are to SCO. Has anybody looked into that? Are there any ex-CIA guys at the top of that power structure?
And what with Bill Gates working with the vaunted offices of Homeland Security, it seems that the noose is really tightening on public information technologies. --The most promising area of total control of the human race.
When the government can watch your every action through sneaky software which you can't do anything about because Open Source no longer exists, and when the government can turn off your debit/credit cards at will whenever it deems your actions as seditious. . . Well, starvation is a wonderful motivator, isn't it? Ah. The cashless society. (What with all of that evil counterfeiting which has become a national pass-time to worry about, --to such a degree that the growing public distrust of money is almost invisible at this point. How many hundreds of millions of ultraviolet money-lamps have been installed next to cash registers over the last ten years. . ?)
Not that I'm complaining, comrade. Wouldn't dream of it! Got to get those damned terrorists, after all. And isn't it fantastic how the price of chocolate has gone down again? That's the government looking out for us, old boy!
Heil Schwarzenegger!
-FL
This gives a whole new meaning to "Kernel panic, core dumped" (Read it aloud. Kernel sounds alot like Colonel ;-)
I think I will extend the GPL for my piece of already GPL'ed software with something like:
- This software CAN'T be used by any military organization in the world.
Maybe we should all do the same and contribute for a better world.
Peace
The Army has already chosen Linux as the OS for the Future Combat Systems. FCS programs won't be depolyed for years, but they are the future of the Army and are currently being developed.
How do they charge the batteries? How long can a charge possibily last? So now on top of the 100lbs of stuff a soldier have to carry, they have to bring extra equipment and batteries?
You, sir, are a Gand and I claim my five pounds :)
Cheers & God bless
Sam "SammyTheSnake" Penny
Already referred to by many as a 'self-propelled funeral fire'.
I try to make everyone's day a little more surreal.
If you use Windows, the terrorists have already won.
-- dR.fuZZo
There are also deployment issues. Linux is easier to clone between machines. In fact, I've taken the hard drive out of a linux server and dropped it into an entirely different machine, and it ran. The army knows they are going to be building the units a few million at a time, but the batch from 2004 is going to have a slightly different chipset than the 2003 models. Or perhaps a model in 2008 needs a driver for a new interface to a robotic scout.
When doing large deployments, you can't afford to maintain 30 different versions of the same software. It's icky.
I do hear you that most of the announcment was about the hardware. I'll bet you they found that all the custom hardware they designed 2 years ago is now commercially available and a lot more powerful.
"Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival."
--Dr.W.Edwards Deming
I really would like to know the connections of the people running SCO, and I think my observations are entirely valid.
-FL
don't get me wrong, I love tech, but what prevents someone from DDOS's our soldiers?
This network performs intel in both directions. What prevents the soldiers from either having their signal blocked or worse, having their communication systems overwhelmed by data flooding and/or debilitating noise from their headsets?
[joke]Or worse yet... be distracted by streaming music and live porn video feeds..[/joke]
Winged Power Photography
Imagine a beowulf cluster of these!
I guess it would be called a squad.
No one wants to be under the command of General Protection Fault.
"Look Lois, the two symbols of the Republican Party: an elephant, and a fat white guy who is threatened by change."
Nonetheless, SCO getting its way would mean several huge nails in the coffins of both Linux and GPL. Conspiracy or not, this would benefit the Masters Of The Universe in utterly enormous ways during a time when these things really, really matter.
This is why I would be interested to know more about the driving personas behind SCO and their associations. --As simple to understand as SCO appears to be. Even if the name players are just your standard, greed-motivated lawyers, then their position in the business world makes them a prime target for use by other parties who do have specific agendas. 50 million dollars appearing from thin air is fairly clear evidence of this, I think. ($25 million of which isn't public record.)
I don't much care for the word, 'Conspiracy'. I prefer to use the word 'Corruption' because people haven't been programmed into believing that it doesn't exist.
If one smells fishy smells, it usually means there is a rotting fish somewhere.
Anyway, thank you for responding with a real post. It is appreciated.
-FL
"Where else than in OSS land do you get anything for basicly nothing?" Sunlight and stellar fusion is the basis of all energy on our planet. Nobody charges for that. Except those who have monopolized energy.
I was refering to something created by man. If the sun was privately built and owned by men, you bet you'd be paying to stand in their light. The energy companies aren't charging for sunlight, they're charging for transforming it into something you can use. And they want paid for it just like everybody else, except in OSS land. There you get the result of countless manhours of work for free (both as in beer and in freedom).
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
Ya gotta keep tryin
...
Joseppi Blauinski aka
Bart Folaminoski
aka