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geekhack Community => Off Topic => Topic started by: wap32 on Fri, 26 November 2010, 13:42:01

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: wap32 on Fri, 26 November 2010, 13:42:01

I found the first image pretty funny. :biggrin:
The photos remind me of WarGames.

Still, how do you design a mission-critical keyboard?
Does it use two switches per key for redundancy or something? Or is it just a regular keyboard built with military-spec parts?

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: quadibloc on Fri, 26 November 2010, 17:36:04

Fortunately, it looks like the X Window System - maybe ancient fvwm - on those screens. Had the computers involved in this critical task been running Microsoft Windows, a comment to the effect of "We're all DOOOMED" would have been de rigeur at this point.

But OS/2 I could live with.

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: nathanscribe on Fri, 26 November 2010, 19:30:59

Quote from: wap32;252583

The photos remind me of WarGames.

That is exactly what I was thinking.  Turn the key SIR!

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: 8_INCH_FLOPPY on Fri, 26 November 2010, 20:08:06

They probably don't worry too much about keyboards, considering how reliable they are.  I bet they worry more about the complicated network of electronics and mechanics that launches the missiles, not to mention the guidance system.

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: ch_123 on Sat, 27 November 2010, 05:39:25

Quote from: quadibloc;252735

Fortunately, it looks like the X Window System

I'm not so sure that that can be counted as 'fortunate'

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: ricercar on Sat, 27 November 2010, 11:11:27

Quote from: wap32;252583

Still, how do you design a mission-critical keyboard?
Does it use two switches per key for redundancy or something? Or is it just a regular keyboard built with military-spec parts?

In the late 1990s you'd put a Motorola 68030 CPU with firmware on every key, programmed to prevent keybounce and other undesirable behavior. At least this is what they did on the stealth aircraft.

Source: the man at Northrop who wrote the firmware.

Title: Speaking Of North Korea, No typos or transposition errors PLEEEZZZZZ
Post by: RickyJ on Sun, 28 November 2010, 01:04:07

Newfoundland, Canada's lifeboat.  Quebec might survive but it'd sink in the Atlantic from all the poutine on board.