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Windows blue screen of death at Frankfurt Airport

By | February 1, 2008, 2:13am PST

I spent the last ten days in London and Frankfurt in a morning-to-night whirlwind of business meetings. While the trip was great, it left me literally no time to blog, which was a drag. Nonetheless, walking through Frankfurt security, I looked up and saw beautiful blog material — a public Windows blue screen of death. It was almost an omen, signaling return to the land of blogging.

After taking the photo, your intrepid blogger was accosted by security who unsmilingly explained, in extremely definite and clear terms, that “Cameras are not allowed.”

Windows blue screen of death at Frankfurt Airport

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Michael Krigsman is a recognized authority on the causes and prevention of IT failures.

Disclosure

Michael Krigsman

Michael Krigsman writes and speaks about technology in a manner that most observers consider to be fair and balanced. Michael believes that writing about IT failures, which often have complex causes, creates a unique obligation to be reasonable and accurate in both reporting and analysis.

Michael maintains active personal and professional relationships with enterprise technology buyers, vendors, analyst firms (or individual analysts), consultants, and system integrators. As CEO of Asuret, Michael sells and delivers paid services to members of these same groups.

Vendors regularly reimburse Michael's out-of-pocket travel expenses to attend industry conferences and events. Conference organizers frequently waive entry fees when Michael attends industry events. Michael often speaks at industry conferences and events.

He is a member of the Enterprise Irregulars, a loose association of consultants, investors, industry representatives, analysts, and users of enterprise software.

For daily updates on Michael's activities, follow him on Twitter.

Biography

Michael Krigsman

Michael Krigsman is CEO of Asuret, Inc., a consulting company dedicated to reducing technology implementation failures. Asuret's suite of software tools improve the success rate of enterprise software deployments by quantifying and measuring governance issues that cause most project failures. Michael led the research effort underlying Asuret's model of collective intelligence and its practical application to reducing IT failures in consulting environments. He is a recognized authority on the causes and prevention of IT failures and is frequently quoted in the press on IT project and related CIO issues. He is considered an enterprise software industry "influencer" and provides advice to technology buyers, vendors, and services firms.

Previously, Michael served as CEO of Cambridge Publications, which develops tools and processes for software implementations and related business practice automation projects. Michael has been involved with hundreds of software development projects, for companies ranging from small startups to Fortune 500 organizations. Michael graduated with an M.B.A. from Boston University and a B.A. from Bard College. He is a Board member of the America's Cup Hall of Fame and the Herreshoff Marine Museum in Bristol, RI.

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No it's not a security screen
ian_rw 5th Aug 2009
The picture is of a logo monitor at Frankfurt Airport.

These monitors display an airline logo above a check-in, lost and found or transfer counter. There is no security implication here.
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This is newsworthy?
ye 1st Feb 2008
One BSOD and you feel the need to write about it?
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that it's passe.
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Wrong!
ye 1st Feb 2008
Give it a rest. How many terminals in an airport are running Windows? So you find *ONE* that had a BSOD and it is newsworthy? Well, perhaps but in the opposite manner in which you oh so want: That it's so RARE that it needs to be reported.
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The definition of 'newsworthy' is..
msalzberg 1st Feb 2008
'out of the ordinary.'

Back in the '80s, on the late, great newscast, NBC News Overnight, Linda Ellerbee
responded to Ronald Reagan decrying the lack of 'good' news on the TV news
broadcasts. Her point was that she hoped we never got to the point where good
things became newsworthy.

So, in that regard, perhaps this is newsworthy, since it is uncommon.
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I see 4-5/year.
Bruizer 3rd Feb 2008
and I don't travel by airport al that much (1-2 times/month).
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Contributr
Public crashes are newsworthy
mkrigsman@... 1st Feb 2008
This is not someone's laptop - it's a security screen in major airport. Yes, it's newsworthy.
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Opinions vary!
ShadeTree 1st Feb 2008
I have to weigh in on the not news worthy side.
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Contributr
I find public BSODs interesting
mkrigsman@... 1st Feb 2008
But then again, not everyone views it that way. Also, it provided a great opportunity for me to explain why I haven't blogged during the last ten days.
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It does make you wonder
otaddy 1st Feb 2008
If a system crashed in your office, how long would it take before someone fixed it?

At an airport you would think that this would be fixed rather quickly since the public depends on this system.
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No it's not a security screen
ian_rw 5th Aug 2009
The picture is of a logo monitor at Frankfurt Airport.

These monitors display an airline logo above a check-in, lost and found or transfer counter. There is no security implication here.
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Wow- have a sense of humor
mikedahn@... 1st Feb 2008
I am amazed at the critics of this story. It does not appear to be a major headline, just an off story; and one with humor! People that criticize it for being not newsworthy are the very same ones that came to this page to read the story . . . Thank you, it was a nice chuckle to start my snowed-in Friday.
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Contributr
Thanks!
mkrigsman@... 1st Feb 2008
I really appreciate your comment -- you totally understood and explained my intention! Sometimes, I go into depth on a subject and explore the implications of an important issue.

This was nothing more than a light-hearted sharing of something I happened to see. I was running through the airport, saw this, and thought some blog readers might get a laugh out of it.
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This is a blog, not the New York Times.
Valis Keogh 4th Feb 2008
as such, this is definately blogworthy.
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We see this all the time
AbbydonKrafts 1st Feb 2008
Over at http://thedailywtf.com . ATMs, Airports, Subways.. all sorts of Windows errors and crashes.

MODS: That's NOT my site, so I'm not just self-promoting! I just find it amusing since I'm a developer. The site covers "Curious Perversions in Information Technology"
Given the number of devices running Windows the number of times we see it is low.
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You don't get out much do you?
devlin_X 3rd Feb 2008
You should have made this blog meaningful. Bluescreens in public places, even airports, is not a rare occurence or noteworthy, but the implications are. You lead a company that heads off this type of failure, yet you provide no insight into what you observed, even if it was the impact to the passengers in the airport who rely on this technology to get to the right gate at the right time.

Return to blogging when you really have something useful to say and not when you feel the need to see your name in print.
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Contributr
There are times for depth
mkrigsman@... 1st Feb 2008
And there are times when a simple photo brings forth an observation and nothing else. I think both approaches are valid at different times and for different subject matter. Thanks for your opinion, however.
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BSD
NotesPro 1st Feb 2008
Let's hope they weren't seeing the same thing on the air traffic control system!
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You are so right!
ja4509 1st Feb 2008
There is not much about the Microsoft Windows Operating System that remains news worthy. Especially the fact that it sucks is aready in public domain and nothing new about it.
I wonder if that was XP or Vista that upchucked. We usually enjoy
computer freezes and muck-ups when big trade shows are
running a presentation and things get out of whack, so this is just
a different version of it. Enjoy it.
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Had I been travelling
mhenriday 1st Feb 2008
via Frankfurt (am Main ?) on that day and hour, I should definitely have found the event memorable. That the sensitivities of those who would like to feel - or rather, would like the rest of us to feel - that the Microsoft trademark is a guarantee of reliability are aroused by Mr Krigsman's article is understandable, but as we see from the latter's name, he is a (descendant of) warriors, and is unlikely to be too disturbed by the not unexpected reaction....

Henri
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Contributr
Your comment made me laugh
mkrigsman@... 1st Feb 2008
Geez, we can deal with serious issues and still have fun, don't you think? Thanks for the comment.
It used to be fun to travel by air...now when you enter the airport you enter Bizzaro world, a scary place where shampoo and nailcutters are terrorist threats. A place were high school dropouts can earn big $$ harassing people.
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Ok, so a computer crashed, I bet that is about 1 out of 100 million in the past from Unix to Windows. I have been in IT for about 4 years now and working for companies that have had in excess of 10,000 windows servers and desktops and to be honest with you have seen very few blue screens and the ones I have had all been related to hardware. This seems like an article that should have come out about 10 years ago when they were more prevalent. Now if someone see's one its big deal because its a very uncommon thing these days. Its too bad Microsoft isn't like Apple where they control every aspect of the system including drivers for hardware, but I guess that would just stiffle innovation in the tech world, just let Apple do it and we can all just go out of business.
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My Leopard Mac crashes at least daily. Either it locks up or slightly rarer I get what I
refer to as the BBOD (Black Box of Death), where it simply stops the entire OS and tells
me I must restart my computer by holding down the power button for a few seconds.
And this is not a hardware issue as I'm on my second MacBook Pro with this behavior.
My Windows XP laptop crashed once in a blue moon.
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Missing...
ov-1mohawk 1st Feb 2008
I'm missing something here...."No Cameras Allowed...in the Airport" Excuse me for being naive, but really? As far as the blue screen, who knows what version it was ('98?) or if it was up to date. Don't forget hardware (memory) can become flaky and cause about the same thing.
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RE: Windows BSOD
fatman65535 1st Feb 2008
Just be happy that it did not happen to the flight software of the aircraft you were flying on.

I can just see it now - flying at 40,000 feet over the ocean and the flight software BSOD's - happy landings!
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Who says it is the O/S?
Marty R. Milette 1st Feb 2008
Badly written applications have been known to crash the O/S -- but nobody here seems to realize that little factoid. Sure, it ain't supposed to happen, but lots of things aren't.

I've seen UNIX-based bank ATMs in similar states as well. Not really such a big deal.
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My old dell xp system started to blue screen, but when I investigated it, I found a problem with the motherboard and the dvd drive.

Once this was fixed, no more blue screens. And yes I have seen unix systems crash too--mainly due to problems with the system drive.
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RE: Windows blue screen of death at Frankfurt Airport
phoenix.psaltery@... 1st Feb 2008
My favorite public BSOD was pulling in to the bank drive-through and seeing the blue screen on the display instead of the cute teller.
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Replacing a cute young teller with a BSOD is just Wrong!! Wrong on so many levels.
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Is this Freedom?
GreggN 2nd Feb 2008
When I studied American history, one of the original principles of this country was that all rights belong to the people except those that are specifically granted to the government by the people in order to accomplish things for the community. In any public place, it is likely that your actions are being recorded on video for some security or police force. In many public buildings, citizens are forbidden to take pictures. I don't buy the argument that these oppressive tactics are employed to improve security. If our security is so weak that a picture will expose its flaws, then there is no security at all.
They want govt involvement in all aspects of their lives. The current presidential debates are proof of this as each candidate tries to outdo the other in govt handouts--all except Ron Paul, that is.

Of course we wouldnt need all this additional security if our military, state dept, and CIA didnt intervene all over the world.
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Off topic....
thungurknifur 6th Feb 2008
"Of course we wouldnt need all this additional security if our military, state dept, and CIA didnt intervene all over the world. "
Amen to that!

If only more Americans would realize this.

They don't hate you 'cause "of your freedoms", they hate you because you(r government) meddle(s) in other's affairs all around the globe.

And the whole "War on Terror" is a joke.
Terror is not an idealogy, it is strategy and tactics.

You might as well have a "War on Hate".
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Uh, dude....
Hallowed are the Ori 11th Feb 2008
When I studied American history, one of the original principles of this country was that all rights belong to the people except those that are specifically granted to the government by the people in order to accomplish things for the community. In any public place, it is likely that your actions are being recorded on video for some security or police force. In many public buildings, citizens are forbidden to take pictures. I don't buy the argument that these oppressive tactics are employed to improve security. If our security is so weak that a picture will expose its flaws, then there is no security at all.

Dude... he took the picture in the airport in Frankfurt... GERMANY. Why that triggered your "stupid Americans" rant is not quite clear.
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I get a chuckle
zachschi@... 2nd Feb 2008
I always get a good chuckle when I see a BSD somewhere when I'm out and about, especially when I don't have to fix it. Thanks for the article.
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But it rarely gets documented.
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Priceless!
devlin_X 3rd Feb 2008


Microsoft blue screening in public....$100.00


Tourist catching a picture of it.... $250.00


Tourist being accosted by security for snaping the picture....$500.00


Windows BSOD crashing at a security check point....Priceless!


For everyone else there's Linux......


The shear irony that it was at a security:)
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Contributr
That one's good
mkrigsman@... 4th Feb 2008
Thanks for the comment!
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Buy a new Ford, see a blue screen
Ole Man 3rd Feb 2008
Take a cab to the airport, see another blue
screen.

Just hope you don't see a blue screen in the
cockpit. Pretty difficult to reboot at
35,000 feet.

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