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Load Testing on Oct 26
On this day in 1992, a lack of load testing and poor software quality assurance practices possibly caused as many as 45 deaths in London.
Wired magazine published a story about this day in tech that spells out how just about everything that could go wrong did go wrong with a high-profile software project. Bad project management, lots of Dilbert clones, nearly 100 known bugs, no backup implementation plan, inappropriate user training, an ineffective user interface, and blatant incompetence with systems planning are all reasons for a major system failure.
Absolutely no load testing?! You've got to be kidding? It may not have been the only reason for failure, but when you need real-time access to a mission-critical system for ambulances, skimping on QA is simply criminal. There is no mention of liability. I wonder what this debacle cost the London Service? Perhaps this is just one more gigantic flaw in a socialized medical system. Bureaucrats making decisions that are life-threatening based on economic theoretical savings are destined to backfire. I'm a big fan of saving costs by making more efficient technology and replacing antiquated processes, but this sad story is an example of quality sacrifice by unskilled professionals that turned deadly.
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