this post was submitted on 02 Apr 2026
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Why the fuck would you use windows in mission critical spaces.
Uhhh so they can see where they are
To have a nice Outlook on things
So they can rest while the Copilot handles stuff for a while
All of this will surely give them the Edge they need for this mission.
They’re going farther from earth than any human ever has. That makes them Explorers
I just hope they don't Paint themselves into a corner
Luckly space has no corners, it's not an Office
The Windows must withstand Micro soft-impact meteors
Someone should make a movie about this. Maybe put some iconic soundtrack in it, too.
Not that useful in space
You wouldn't and they didn't.
The article has just failed to inform the readers (the few that got past the headline), that this was on his personal Surface Tablet and not on anything associated with the mission.
If it's on the ship, it's associated with the mission. Windows has a very high habit of barfing so over itself, as is evidenced by this article. It's bonkers to me that they chose to use Windows for anything at all.
I don't think the phone in my pocket is "associated with my job" when I'm working, just because it's in the same location. Do you?
False equivalency.
If you were going on a 10 day hike to the most remote location on earth, would you bring the most unreliable device you could find, or something you can count on?
You don't understand. Their personal device can be trashed immediately without any drawbacks to the mission.
If I go on a 10 day hike to the most remote location on Earth, and bring my yoyo to have some fun with, I really don't care if it breaks on my hike, and the hike is not affected except for my not having fun with my yoyo.
No, I do understand. I still think it's a bad decision. It's not just about how critical to the mission it is. It's useful as a form of communication with family and entertainment. In that context I do think it's "important". And also in that context, I would want something reliable.
Absolutely agree. It's still wrong that it's associated with the mission, and it's not "absolutely bonkers" to not really think about the personal email client you use.
It's not like Outlook is their main way of communicating with mission control. If the tablet actually craps the bed, they'll just use another computer. They're nothing if not redundant. Calling a personal tablet mission critical is a false equivalence
Tbh nowadays mail software kinda sucks all around, not just Outlook
I disagree
Alright, you've convinced me
Then my job here is done!
The tablets are a convenience, not a requirement and so being commercial off the shelf means it's cheaper and it works well enough than what purpose-built hardware and software.
If every tablet died, the mission would proceed without pause. Except the astronauts would be checking gauges instead of looking at a system monitor on their tablet and not sending as many e-mails.
There was a slight miscommunication at the fabrication stage. The requirement was to include windows and now they are in a windowless tube with two not functioning outlook accounts. Honest mistake, could happen to anyone
Imagine: You are the first human approaching the moon for a landing since 50+ years. Just a couple of seconds before touchdown the PC starts rebooting because an engineer clicked remind me later on earth and the PC registered that nobody moved the mouse or pressed a key for more than 3 nanoseconds so the user is surely AFK and has definitely nothing important going on so let’s close all open documents and reboot 🤷🏻♂️
Idk, if I go to space I def want windows ... operated by trained, reliable penguins.
Yeah, that's no reason. That's fucking stupid.
To phone home