Latest news with #Windows95
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
FAA to eliminate floppy disks, outdated tech in air traffic control system
(NewsNation) — Federal aviation officials last week unveiled an ambitious, three-year plan aimed at modernizing the U.S.'s air traffic control system. The plan calls for a new, state-of-the-art system to replace the outdated technology currently in use, which includes floppy disks and computers running the Windows 95 operating system. According to NPR, air traffic controllers also still use slips of paper containing flight numbers to help track the approximately 45,000 flights that the Federal Aviation Administration handles on a daily basis. 'The whole idea is to replace the system,' acting FAA administrator Chris Rocheleau said. 'No more floppy disks or paper strips.' Aviation experts say air safety issues are years in the making A 2023 FAA assessment determined that more than a third of the country's air traffic control systems were unsustainable. Some had already begun to fail. System failures most recently hit Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, where staffing shortages and equipment issues have caused mass delays over the past few months. The delays forced FAA officials to curtail the number of flights in and out of the airport. Airline officials pointed to those system failures in a recent open letter to Congress urging legislators to provide adequate funding to overhaul the 'wildly outdated' system. Sean Duffy outlines plans to 'radically transform' air traffic control Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy last week described the proposed plan as the 'most important infrastructure project' the U.S. has seen in decades. 'Everyone agrees, this is non-partisan,' Duffy said at a news conference. 'Everyone knows we have to do it.' It was unclear how much the authorities believe the project will cost, though Duffy has estimated the price tag at somewhere in the tens of billions of dollars, NPR reported. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Floppy Disks and Windows 95: The FAA Needs New Tech
Remember the good ol' days of Windows 95? No? That's because Microsoft ended support for the operating system nearly 25 years ago. Windows has seen several versions come and go since then, but it seems that the Federal Aviation Administration hasn't kept up. According to Windows Central, the FAA is only now planning to phase out the 30-year-old OS. At a budget hearing recently, FAA chief Chris Rocheleau noted that a major tech overhaul is in the planning stages. The FAA will no longer use Windows 95 for air traffic control. Floppy disks, another tech relic, will also be canned—something that should have happened a long time ago, one would think. Paper strips containing plane info will also be replaced by more modern tech—if such an overhaul actually happens. The FAA has good intentions, but raising the money for the upgrade may not be easy. The agency's plan for revamping its technology, laid out in a document titled Brand New Air Traffic Control System: America is Building Again, points to the agency's current budget as inadequate for the task ahead. 'Over the past 15 years, the annual appropriation to the Facilities and Equipment (F&E) account used to sustain and improve most of FAA's air traffic control infrastructure has remained essentially flat at approximately $3 billion per year,' the plan notes. 'This stagnant funding has caused the FAA to lose about $1 billion in purchasing power due to inflation, as the agency seeks to maintain aging systems and infrastructure and meet ambitious goals to modernize the system for increased safety and efficiency of the NAS [National Airspace System].' When it comes to outdated tech, the FAA isn't flying alone. British Airways, which retired its fleet of Boeing 747-400 planes during the COVID pandemic, revealed that the planes had made use of floppy disks the entire time. Never mind that floppy disks only store 1.44MB of data—the airline simply had crew insert up to eight disks to load critical flight information every 28 days. Interestingly, relying on floppy disks to update the avionics may have provided a certain amount of security for what is clearly important data to protect, a la Battlestar Galactica. Modern, remotely updated systems require extra precautions to stay secure. Still, it's a relief to know that modern planes are using newer and (presumably) more capable avionics.
WIRED
12-06-2025
- WIRED
Air Traffic Control in the US Still Runs on Windows 95 and Floppy Disks
Benj Edwards, Ars Technica The Federal Aviation Administration is seeking contractors to modernize its decades-old computer systems within four years. Photograph:On Wednesday, acting FAA administrator Chris Rocheleau told the House Appropriations Committee that the Federal Aviation Administration plans to replace its aging air traffic control systems, which still rely on floppy disks and Windows 95 computers, Tom's Hardware reports. The agency has issued a Request for Information to gather proposals from companies willing to tackle the massive infrastructure overhaul. 'The whole idea is to replace the system. No more floppy disks or paper strips,' Rocheleau said during the committee hearing. US transportation secretary Sean Duffy called the project 'the most important infrastructure project that we've had in this country for decades,' describing it as a bipartisan priority. Most air traffic control towers and facilities across the US currently operate with technology that seems frozen in the 20th century, although that isn't necessarily a bad thing—when it works. Some controllers currently use paper strips to track aircraft movements and transfer data between systems using floppy disks, while their computers run Microsoft's Windows 95 operating system, which launched in 1995. As Tom's Hardware notes, modernization of the system is broadly popular. Sheldon Jacobson, a University of Illinois professor who has studied risks in aviation, says that the system works remarkably well as is but that an upgrade is still critical, according to NPR. The aviation industry coalition Modern Skies has been pushing for ATC modernization and recently released an advertisement highlighting the outdated technology. While the vintage systems may have inadvertently protected air traffic control from widespread outages like the CrowdStrike incident that disrupted modern computer systems globally in 2024, agency officials say 51 of the FAA's 138 systems are unsustainable due to outdated functionality and a lack of spare parts. The FAA isn't alone in clinging to floppy disk technology. San Francisco's train control system still runs on DOS loaded from 5.25-inch floppy disks, with upgrades not expected until 2030 due to budget constraints. Japan has also struggled in recent years to modernize government record systems that use floppy disks. If It Ain't Broke? Modernizing the air traffic control system presents engineering challenges that extend far beyond simply installing newer computers. Unlike typical IT upgrades, ATC systems must maintain continuous 24/7 operation, because shutting down facilities for maintenance could compromise aviation safety. This uptime requirement eliminates the possibility of traditional system replacement approaches where old hardware gets swapped out during scheduled downtime. The replacement systems must also meet security requirements to resist cyberattacks. A successful breach of air traffic control infrastructure could paralyze national aviation networks, resulting in cascading effects that impact transportation, commerce, and emergency services. And yet not everyone is convinced the planned massive overhaul will achieve the desired effects. In an NPR report on the issue, aviation industry analyst Robert W. Mann Jr. expressed skepticism about whether new systems will actually materialize. 'This has been the same mantra for the past 30 years. Give them more money. They'll build the new system. It'll work better, work harder,' Mann told NPR. 'And we've been doing that for well over 30 years now, and we've gotten the same results.' Still, recent failures have confirmed some vulnerabilities in the aging system. A January 2023 outage in the FAA's Notice to Airmen system forced the grounding of every flight nationwide for more than two hours. Experts blamed the failure on aging infrastructure and damaged database files, with sources telling CNN at the time that budget constraints had repeatedly delayed needed tech refreshes. More recently, radar and communication outages led to hundreds of delays and cancellations at Newark Liberty International Airport, with a wiring failure being cited as one cause. The US Transportation Department has set a four-year timeline for completing the modernization project, though industry experts question whether this schedule is realistic given the scope and complexity involved. According to the NPR report, Jacobson thinks the administration's announced timeline is 'wildly optimistic,' especially given the absence of a price tag for the sweeping plan. The FAA has announced several 'Industry Days' where companies can present their technologies and proposals to department officials. The White House has not yet disclosed the expected cost of the modernization effort. Despite the financial uncertainty, Duffy emphasized the perceived urgency of the project: 'Everyone agrees—this is nonpartisan. Everyone knows we have to do it.' This story originally appeared on Ars Technica.
Toronto Star
07-06-2025
- General
- Toronto Star
I was terrified of the outdoors. Here's what changed my mind
For my parents, the perfect backyard looks like the Windows 95 wallpaper: grass so uniformly green and freshly cut it might as well be carpet. There are no trees that bear fruit and attract animals (and their poop). There are zero bushes for animals to shelter in (and poop). No flowers for bees to hover around because they don't want my sister and me to end up like Macaulay Culkin at the end of 'My Girl.' They are literally the people who would love to pave paradise and put up a parking lot. In their defense, we immigrated from a part of Hong Kong where the apartments they lived in didn't have an inch of green space, let alone a backyard with gardens and lawns to maintain throughout the year (the first thing they did when they moved in was dig up the tulips the previous owner had planted because the squirrels kept eating the bulbs). To them, nature was a nuisance, an impediment to industry and a well-off, cosmopolitan life. And so I grew up believing that. Going barefoot on the grass? What if I stepped on thistle or, worse, poop? Asking me to climb a tree would be like asking me to touch a rotting, slimy piece of wood crawling with centipedes and spiders that ate my flesh (it was the '80s, and for Mom and Dad, Stranger Danger extended to isopods).
Buzz Feed
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
21 Nostalgic Sounds Younger Generations Will Never Hear
Recently, Reddit user u/Repulsive-Pitch2555 asked an extremely nostalgic question, "People over 30: What's a sound from your childhood that younger generations will never hear?" Here are the top-voted nostalgic sounds that millennials and Gen-Xers can hear just like it was yesterday: "The clink of those heavy metal seat belt buckles. Bonus points if it branded the GM logo into your leg because it was 9,000 degrees." —KillerKowalski1 "For me, it's the screeching dial-up internet sound. I can still hear it in my soul." —Repulsive-Pitch2555"EEEEEEEEEerrrrrrrrrrbimbahmbindahmeeeeeeee."—BonerTurds"Poing-Poing-whap-PSSSSHHHHHHHHHH."—nmezib "That squeaky sound of the AIM chat door opening when your friend logged on." —ParcOSP"Or when it slammed shut and it was your crush who logged off 😭😂"—peacelovetacos247 "Static from the TV on the wrong channel or when the antenna wasn't adjusted properly." —StringSlinging "The opening of a VHS case. Also, the rewinding of a VHS tape." —leafer91 "The sound of someone slamming the phone when hanging up." —Rivas-al-Yehuda"And the satisfaction."—ladydrybones "The Windows 95 start-up sounds have been BURNED INTO MY SOUL." —Xeroxitosis "If you'd like to make a call, please hang up and try again. If you need help, hang up and then dial your operator." —cheesechimp"And the three weird little discordant tones that preceded it."—onlymemes-plz "The cassette rewinding faster and faster and faster until that final thump, and then a whine as it tries to keep rewinding and can't." —ledow"Alternatively, the horrifying sound of the cassette player devouring your tape before you can run across the room to stop it. Followed by the sad sounds of twisting and twisting the little wheel thingie with your finger as you attempt to respool the tape into the cassette."—shugersugar"I always kept a ✏️ nearby for just that that section of tape was forever garbled."—Sweet-Competition-15 "The cha-chunk of a manual credit card machine thingy." —Edward_the_Dog "This is so silly, but the squeak of the crank windows on cars takes me back." —Rockelle_Americano"Also, the sound old-fashioned analog blinkers made. New cars try to imitate it, but they don't quite hit the spot. And then the way old windshield wiper motors sounded — they were so loud that they drowned out the noise of the rain."—Me66 "Disney movie trailers voiced by Mark Elliott. If you don't know his name, you've definitely heard his voice in Disney trailers from the '90s and 2000s. He died in 2021, so younger generations will never hear him promote a new Disney thing." —PurpleDreamer28"Omg yes — 'Coming soon to own on video and DVD…' was literally a genre of trailer on its own. RIP to the voice of childhood."—Repulsive-Pitch2555 "The staticky sound from those grey computer speakers when a call was coming in." —will2165"Ditadit ditadit ditadit diiiiiiiiii...."—Pigheaded40something "N-Ni-Nic-Nick-N-Nic-Nick-Nick-NICKELODEONNNN." —Key-Cap3156"There's a documentary called The Orange Years that's all about Nickelodeon from the early '80s until about 2000. It's a really nostalgic trip for anyone who grew up in that timeframe."—Seahearn4 "You've got mail." —StagWants2Party"The AOL voice! That 'welcome' still lives rent-free in my brain. 😅"—Repulsive-Pitch2555 "After these messages, we'll be right back." —NBAccount "Downloading a corrupted file on Limewire and getting the good old 'I did not have sexual relations with that woman.'" —DueSink728 "The sound of someone blowing into a Nintendo cartridge." —DesignerCampaign2567 "Waking up at 3 a.m. on the couch to, 'How will I ever live without you! ULTIMATE LOVE SONG COLLECTION OF THE '80s." —zRustyShackleford "The sound of clapping out the chalkboard erasers." —Hikikomori_Otaku "Opening a glass bottle of Snapple. That popping sound." —MrCrix What other nostalgic sounds from your childhood do you miss? Let us know in the comments!
