Of crashes and bugs As anyone knows, a computer, while immensely useful, is not the most stable of devices. Hardware failures and software bugs plague anyone who uses a computer. People gripe and grumble over these failings, but thankfully, the effects of these errors are usually limited to a few people. Increasingly, though, we are witnessing more and more computer issues that can effect large numbers of people in a dramatic fashion. The failure of one air traffic control system can have ripple effects throughout the world in a matter of minutes.
Computerized trading can cause the stock market to gyrate wildly.
The failure of one satellite can impair the communication of millions of people. As computers are moved deeper and deeper into our lives, the possibilities of catastrophic events grows ever greater. This means that all of you, as computer professionals, are taking on growing responsibility with every product you manufacturer and every line of code you write. Since the inception of the personal computer, hardware and software manufacturers have done everything in their power to deny responsibility for the flaws in their products. I am confident in saying that every piece of software written today contains at least one bug that can crash the program or the computer running it.