Artemis II Astronauts Have 'Two Microsoft Outlooks' and Neither Work (404media.co) 139
Even on NASA's Artemis II mission around the moon, astronauts apparently still have to deal with broken Microsoft Outlook. One of the crew members, Reid Wiseman, jokingly reported that he had "two Microsoft Outlooks" and neither worked. 404 Media reports: On April 1, four astronauts from the U.S. and Canada embarked on a 10-day flight to loop around the moon. Spotted by VGBees podcast host Niki Grayson on the NASA livestream of live views from the , around 2 a.m. ET, mission control acknowledges an issue with a process control system and offers to remote in -- yes, like how your office IT guy would pause his CoD campaign to log into Okta for you because you used the wrong password too many times.
One of the astronauts, Reid Wiseman, says that's chill, but while they're in there: "I also see that I have two Microsoft Outlooks, and neither one of those are working." Astronauts are trained for decades in some of the most physically and mentally grueling environments of any career. They're some of the smartest people on the planet, and they have to be, before we strap them to 3.2 million pounds of jet fuel and make them do complex experiments and high-stakes decisions for days on end. And yet, once they get up there, fucking Outlook is borked.
One of the astronauts, Reid Wiseman, says that's chill, but while they're in there: "I also see that I have two Microsoft Outlooks, and neither one of those are working." Astronauts are trained for decades in some of the most physically and mentally grueling environments of any career. They're some of the smartest people on the planet, and they have to be, before we strap them to 3.2 million pounds of jet fuel and make them do complex experiments and high-stakes decisions for days on end. And yet, once they get up there, fucking Outlook is borked.
Just another day at the office (Score:5, Funny)
We're trying to make sure that the astronauts feel comfortable in space and not out of sorts so we made it like just another day at the office.
Orion computers (Score:5, Funny)
Re: Orion computers (Score:3)
I used to get real work done from mutt and alpine. Back when emails were mostly text and a small attachment or hypderlinks.
Yep, downhill since pine (Score:2)
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In my case, those days are now.
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I used to get real work done from mutt and alpine. Back when emails were mostly text and a small attachment or hyperlinks.
I still, to this very day, use alpine as my one and only e-mail client. These days it reads HTML e-mails quite well, showing the text and turning things like images into [IMAGE] links and such. It's very similar to how lynx operates. 99.9% of the e-mails I receive I can read without issue, and without needing any graphics. Eeeeevery now and then I might encounter an e-mail I can't read (or is literally 100% image), but they're very rare.
It also handles Unicode just fine. Which is a double-edged sword
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This brings back strong memories of standing in line for a terminal outside my dorm cafeteria to check email before getting lunch :)
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Used? Why stop? Others and I still use mutt!
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Given they are recycling late 70's/early 80's equipment to make any of this work that probably isn't far from the truth.
Coronalmassejectionbird Client (Score:2)
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You don't need OWA in space. It doesn't matter if I'm the only one who believes this, for I believe it enough for the entire world.
In space, no one can hear you scream "NO fucking email!"
(I mean seriously, they're wired up more than The Truman Show. As if we need written emails when NASA likely has every other form of communication running/streaming/saving/recording.)
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It makes the mission relatable to the general public. Kind of like the Mars rover Curiosity sending its own tweets.
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they should thank their lucky stars (Score:3)
At least they don't have the shit web version.
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At least they don't have the shit web version.
I'd be willing to bet decent money that this will end up being the solution for them, since they can't exactly send an IT nerd in to fix their local clients. Imagine the latency on Office365 from where they are.
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Latency is what kills the Office365 license check.
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Latency is what kills the Office365 license check.
Be hysterical if all the big brains involved in this project hadn't thought of that one.
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Latency is what kills the Office365 license check.
Or Outlook's location check.
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Nice that you have the choice.
Worrisome (Score:5, Funny)
I'm more worried about contaminating the Moon with Microsoft than I am with a few of Earth's microbes.
Re: Worrisome (Score:2)
We'll have at least one billionare-built base on the Moon in our lifetime.
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Do the federal mandates apply in space? (Score:2)
As anyone knows, IT technicians are federally mandated to request a reboot of the system before continued troubleshooting. Does this apply in space and what is Outlook running on anyway?
-m
new Outlook (Score:2)
Well, New Outlook doesn't work with the Gov cloud, so you can eliminate that one.
Time for people to throw money at Thunderbird... (Score:4, Interesting)
IMHO, this is a good time to throw money at Thunderbird, so we have at least one Outlook alternative, next to Mail.app. Especially in the search arena where Thunderbird's searches have been at times, woefully inadequate. It would be nice if it could create an online index, have it encrypted to the master password, and use that.
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Betterbird doesn't solve all of Thunderbird's problems, but it *does* act a little more sanely in many respects, and the search works a bit better on my machines.
New vs. Classic (Score:3)
Classic has the same bugs it always did, New is OWA in a browser app window and is missing features a lot of people care about.
Either one can have a wide selection of connection and authentication issues that are more or less unforgiveable but nobody seems to care because MS is really the only one who has the entire kitchen sink in their product reasonably well integrated.
It's also the last thing I'd have sent on this mission. I guess with modern communications it's nice to have an email client on your spacecraft, but with the lag you're not using Teams and you're not going to be attending any meetings. Do you really need all the extra crap?
I'd rather have them running older, more robust hardware with more efficient and more stable code on them than anything Microsoft provides.
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And all the new web app versions eats memory like a starved hog. 8GB isn't enough 640GB might be enough to solve your problems for this generation.
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And all the new web app versions eats memory like a starved hog. 8GB isn't enough 640GB might be enough to solve your problems for this generation.
Let's hope the bubble pops soon and 640GB doesn't require a credit check and two banking C-level signatories to authorize the loan..
Actual cause (Score:2)
Don't Sweat it! (Score:2)
Inside you... (Score:2)
Inside you there are two outlooks... ... no wait that's not how that expression goes
No surprise (Score:5, Informative)
Outlook breaks in ideal climate-controlled conditions with high-speed hard-line internet, handled by well-staffed IT departments, and provided to competent users. Any time I think I'm having a quiet day at work, it's really because the Outlook app on my phone has stopped refreshing and doesn't start working again until I restart the phone. Why would anyone consider trying it in space?
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Outlook breaks in ideal climate-controlled conditions with high-speed hard-line internet, handled by well-staffed IT departments, and provided to competent users.
I'm calling bullshit. There's no such thing as a "well staffed IT department" in the same breath as "competent users". /sarcasm
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That IT department is today located in a low pay country and anyone that has worked there for more than 12 months is defined as Senior. Some of the people there are there just for a few weeks and don't know what icy roads are.
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On a related note I thought the idea of an IT staffer having time to play CoD at work was a laughably retro idea. In the post-pandemic era anyone who still has an IT job is being worked to the bone.
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Well, NASA apparently hates their astronauts so much they don't want them to return back to Earth alive.
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If only they had Microsoft...Copilot.
My mind is going Dave :o (Score:5, Informative)
However, NASA has been standardized on Microsoft's suite of software and services for years, using the platform across productivity, collaboration, and, yes, communication. The agency even uses Copilot, though it's not clear if the AI has had any part in this mission.”
NASA’s Portable Computer System (PCS) is essentially a fleet of space-qualified laptops used by astronauts
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Uh, Houston we have a bluescreen.
Surely they're on the LTSB (or whatever it's called in this quarter's Brand strategy).
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Microsoft Support: (Score:5, Funny)
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They tried that with Apollo 13. And.... that actually did work, sorta.
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I'd be terrified from the moment I was selected all the way until I was back on Earth, but I think I'd have trouble refusing the opportunity to be the on-site tech for a mission like this.
Give me a handful of space-rated USB flash drives with my favorite reference materials and utilities, a diaper and a barf bag, and I'm there. Maybe a large bottle of gravol and some stimulants to counteract the drowsiness. ...And I would never talk about the diaper or barf bag.
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Error 404: Moon not found
Microsoft leading the way (Score:3)
Microsoft doesn't provide a good service. They don't deserve our tax dollars.
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As always, Microsoft can't help but punch themselves in the dick, and it's been like this for decades. They have the option to provide services to leading agencies and they somewhat provide it because people who write these fucking contracts say Microsoft can be "accountable" but I've never seen any actual accountability. Has anyone in government actually recuperated some of the costs of dealing with Microsoft's bullshit? Microsoft doesn't provide a good service. They don't deserve our tax dollars.
Have you seen any accountability in any of our government officials over the last four decades? Accountability is pretty much a void concept in our government. Why would they expect it from their vendors?
Lost emails in spaaaaaace ! (Score:3)
Long Live PINE (Score:2)
File it under: Why ever?!!! (Score:2)
Hey Redmond... (Score:2)
are you listening?
Outlook? (Score:2)
Seems IT is amateur-hour even in space.
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Seems IT is amateur-hour even in space.
Look, they JUST finished their migration away from Lotus Notes...
Magic 8-ball says (Score:4, Funny)
Magic 8-ball says: Outlook not so good.
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To steal a line from someone else (I think on this very site)-
"The magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask it about Exchange next."
BTW⦠(Score:2)
Probably set to the wrong time zone (Score:2)
Outlook bug with pets on onedrive (Score:2)
Why Windows and Outlook? (Score:2)
They were probably given WIndows and Outlook because of cost cuts. This still baffles me, because Microsoft isn't exactly known for providing stable software and there's software readily available which is waaaay more stable than Windows and Outlook which also happens to be absolutely FREE and they could easily audit the source code.
What a step backwards (Score:2)
Do they have python? (Score:2)
Can they code something up to retrieve email?
I mean having a way to code in space seems like a good idea. Like what if you need to calculate some shit?
Just wait for Artemis 13... (Score:2)
I can see it now. Instead of "Houston, we've had a problem." and Omega being awarded another Silver Snoopy; with the beast of redmond on board the ship, the mission transcript will read:
"This ship will self-destruct in 20 seconds. This is your last chance to push the cancellation button."
"Cancellation button? Hurry!"
"Where is it?! Where is it?!"
"It's gotta be here!"
"Out of order"?! Fuck! Even in the FUTURE, nothing works!"
No evidence it's a problem with Outlook itself (Score:2)
They're trying to do remote desktop from space. There are a whole lot of things that can go wrong with an RDP client in space!
All the astronauts said was that they had trouble accessing Outlook. They are probably *not* trained in IT sufficiently to triage the problem and separate the nuances of network issues vs. infrastructure issues vs. hosting issues vs. configuration issues.
I'll be interested to learn what exactly went wrong. Right now, we don't know.
Mandatory "Space Force" reference :-) (Score:2)
NSFW warning; https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
spam too? (Score:2)
Why do they need email in space? (Score:2)
Sounds like they're just screwing around. Next, we'll see them on Reddit.
Clippy: (Score:2)
"It looks like you're trying to pull an Apollo 13, would you like some help with that?"
Relying on Microsoft in Space (Score:2)
It boggles my mind that anyone would trust their communications to MS when they are going into space and have no alternative available. Do we really want to export the Blue Screen of Death and irritating mandatory updates to the cosmos?
I'm amazed (Score:2)
that this has been up for more than 5 minutes and there hasn't been a "just install linux" comment yet.
baffling (Score:2)
It baffles the mind that Microsoftware - known for decades for being unreliable shit - is allowed on space missions at all, no matter how uncritical the role. The potential for malware alone is ludicrous. "Hey, pay us 2500 bitcoins if you want your space capsule back".
Then again, I figure the days when NASA did the right stuff are long past.
it's the EULA (Score:2)
As there are two workstations, one could have picked I agree while the other I decline
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Doesn't matter, we don't need to understand what really happened to have a laugh and point fingers at Microsoft
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That sentiment doesn't come out of thin air though.
But hey, they're amongst the most influential entities on the planet. They can take jibes.
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The license servers can't be reached from space in a timely manner. So the license has expired when the package reaches the spacecraft.
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Proprietary software is written under unrealistic deadlines set by suits who want to cut costs in order to fatten their profit margins. It is natural that the resultant quality will be lower than that of open source solutions, most of which are written by industry veterans who have the time and the motivation to build them well.
Maybe NASA should think this through.
Re: "Two Microsoft Outlooks" (Score:2)
This. We have SSO, and yet when I open Teams, it is Gettings things ready" for fscking ages. Only to eventually tell me I need to log in. Which I click and - surprise - I am already logged in.
But the worst thing is Tem's trying to do everything. You can message there, store files there, etc, etc. I don't want yet another "Eierlegende Wollmilchsau" - sorry there's no English equivalent really, that's a very negative "Jack of all trades".
Re: "Two Microsoft Outlooks" (Score:4, Funny)
PC LOAD LETTER
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I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that.
Re: "Two Microsoft Outlooks" (Score:2)
This...This is a SUCK!
Re:"Two Microsoft Outlooks" (Score:5, Informative)
I think most people have at least two Microsoft Outlooks. A quick search of my start menu gives me:
Outlook
Outlook (new)
Plus a Microsoft Store suggestion to install Outlook for Windows, which seems to be a third Outlook.
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Don't forget outlook.com, the webmail service, if you need more Outlooks.
Although I think the Microsoft Store Outlook is new Outlook, but I could be wrong.
Re:"Two Microsoft Outlooks" (Score:5, Funny)
Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and Outlook; egg and Outlook; egg bacon and Outlook; egg bacon sausage and Outlook; Outlook bacon sausage and Outlook; Outlook egg Outlook Outlook bacon and Outlook; Outlook sausage Outlook Outlook bacon Outlook tomato and Outlook; Outlook egg sausage and Outlook, that's not got much Outlook in it.
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I don't want ANY Outlook!
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Even allowing for the fact they wanted to rebuild "classic" in a more modern framework and shipped before it had anywhere near feature par
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Yes I'm still using the old Outlook but the "New" Outlook apparently has features I'd like to use, but I can't be bothered to adjust my muscle memory and learn a new UI.
However I just tried launching Outlook (new) and it directed me to stop using this and install the new Outlook app from the Microsoft Store, so there must be a newer new Outlook.
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Re:"Two Microsoft Outlooks" (Score:5, Funny)
I have two Microsoft outlooks:
1) I hate them.
2) I fucking hate them.
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So my Outlooks both have 5 copies of the same meeting. Which of the 10 meetings am I supposed to attend?
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I have two Microsoft outlooks:
"Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me”
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And secuarity says their latency is too high (Score:2)
No way someone could have latency like that. Security issue, proxies probably. Seriously, the only way someone would have latency like that is if they were flying to the moon.
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This combined with the fact Microsoft wants to get away from PWA's, can Microsoft finally just return the business version of Outlook back to normal and stop using the "New Outlook."
Prepare yourself and brace for New (New) New Outlook, The Next One!
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What in the world are you doing on slashdot??? Only MS haters lurk here.
I'm with you, I don't know of a better desktop client for email. Thunderbird is OK, but clunky.
GMail is my favorite client of any type, mainly because it has the best search and the best spam filtering. (Outlook search is OK, but not great, and its spam filtering sucks.)