[time-nuts] Maintaining boatanchors (was Capacitor Failures)

[Bob Camp]

Hi

We occasionally  sell product designed in the late 60's or early 70's. None of it has firmware in it. Remembering what we did use back then for tool chains (and host hardware), I can't fathom how you would go back and update firmware from that era if we had it. It would have to be a "port to new tools and pray" effort. 

Bob

On Oct 24, 2010, at 9:01 AM, Chuck Harris wrote:

> When I am doing production software, I check the entire tool chain into
> the version control system.  That way whenever you make a version you will
> be making it in exactly the same way as it was originally done.
> 
> This can be difficult when there are commercial software tools in the chain.
> To alleviate that problem, I only use open source software and tools.
> 
> -Chuck Harris
> 
> Hal Murray wrote:
>> 
>>> We all start out saying, "This time, we're going to archive things in an
>>> orderly way, and do it as we go along, and it's going to be a exemplary
>>> situation" and pretty soon, as schedules get tight and budgets tighter,
>>> that good intention goes by the wayside.
>> 
>> Modern source-control systems make things a lot easier.
>> 
>> Part of it depends on culture.  If everybody expects to find everything they
>> need in the local file system, then it becomes a habit to collect things like
>> copies of data sheets.
>> 
>> I tend to be paranoid about putting everything into a make file.  Even if
>> some piece of crap software doesn't have a command line mode, I'll put
>> something in the make file to print out directions.
>> 
>> If you are sufficiently paranoid, you also keep track of the software that
>> you used to build things and maybe even the OS it runs on.  That includes
>> utilities as well as compilers, linkers, and CAD systems.  You might even
>> stash away an old PC, just in case.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts at febo.com
> To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
> and follow the instructions there.