[clug] [OT] 'Technical Debt' in Infrastructure, now entering mainstream media

[Brenton Ross]

It would appear that the root cause of this technical debt is down to
the socio-economic system. I suggest that we avoid such topics in this
group.

However, when designing a system it might be prudent to include plans
for maintenance, upgrades, and eventual replacement. Obviously the
exact details cannot be known in advance, but you can advise things
like the size of the maintenance team, for example.

Brenton


On Thu, 2019-11-07 at 12:37 +1100, steve jenkin via linux wrote:
> I’d never heard ’technical debt’ used outside computing systems.
> 
> At last there’snow  a relatively mainstream media piece on the topic
> and its implications.
> 
> Software gets mentioned, though I’ve never seen a methodology to
> measure or estimate “software technical debt” [and refs out there?]
> 
> It seems the USA is discovering that Infrastructure Businesses are
> not, and cannot be sustainably managed as, simple Profit & Loss
> enterprises.
> Maintenance is everything [minimises expenses, maximises throughput &
> billables] and Continuing Upgrade ahead of Demand is necessary for
> “sustainability”.
> 
> Won't discuss Telstra or the MTM-NBN here.
> 
> ======
> 
> tweet thread, with pic of quote
> <
> https://twitter.com/alexismadrigal/status/1189313208500281344?s=20
> >
> 
> The Toxic Bubble of Technical Debt Threatening America
> 	Climate change will soon expose a crippling problem embedded in
> the nation’s infrastructure. 
> 	In fire-ravaged California, it already has.
> 	<
> https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2019/10/california-fires-and-pge-toxic-debt/600979/
> >
> --
> Steve Jenkin, IT Systems and Design 
> 0412 786 915 (+61 412 786 915)
> PO Box 38, Kippax ACT 2615, AUSTRALIA
> 
> mailto:
> sjenkin at canb.auug.org.au
>  
> http://members.tip.net.au/~sjenkin
> 
> 
>