I recently came across this post on Reddit, where someone had come across a group of about a dozen driverless cars all stopped in the middle of the same city block, effectively preventing any traffic from using that street. Obviously, any time a group of artificially intelligent beings decide to gather together in one place,… Continue Reading
Network Ops
Why maintenance windows are important – as shown by a very wet plumber
I recently came across this video on Youtube which shows a plumber try to replace a water pipe in an apartment without turning off the water. The video lasts 14 minutes. That’s 14 minutes of high-pressure hot water spraying everywhere. The plumber ends up drenched, probably with some minor burns, and the apartment (and the… Continue Reading
Cyclomatic Complexity for voice networks
Who here knows what McCabe Cyclomatic Complexity is? Anyone? <silence> It’s a term from computer science that defines the complexity of a computer program. I have a degree in computer science (kinda*), and I’ve never heard of this term – so don’t feel bad if you are not familiar with it. At Award Consulting we… Continue Reading
Formula 1 Crashes – and layers of protection
As a kid growing up in England, I used to watch the Formula 1 Grand Prix races on Sunday afternoons. My Dad and I were TV-buddies, sitting enthralled as the drivers raced at over 200 miles per hour, on twisting, winding tracks in exotic cities across the world. When I moved to the US, I… Continue Reading
What I learned from my first game as a soccer coach
My younger daughter is in 3rd grade, and last summer she joined our local recreational soccer league. Our first season continued through the fall, and she had a great time. She prefers to play defense and she’s become very good at aggressively intercepting the ball and booting it up the field as far as she… Continue Reading
COBOL and the telecoms brain drain
Early in the pandemic, state unemployment departments experienced unprecedented strains on their resources. Many of us have blocked out memories of those days, but in March/April 2020 the number of people applying for unemployment benefits was 860% higher than at the peak of the 2008 financial crisis – and the infrastructure had not been designed… Continue Reading