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Linux : U.S. Postal Service Gives Stamp of Approval To FOSS.

ostatic.com — The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has switched 1,300 of the servers that manage its package tracking system to a Linux environment. The move has taken the better part of a year since all the original system code was written in Cobol and had to be converted for Linux -- a less expensive option than rewriting it altogether.

Who dugg this? Made popular Jul 14, 2009

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  • ZaZ2137, on 07/14/2009, -0/+44COBOL, ***** YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • martalli, on 07/13/2009, -0/+37There's an often unsung benefit of Linux - It can run COBOL...
  • 4AntiStupid, on 07/14/2009, -2/+26Are you saying their system admins don't know how to run a Unix system? Other than that no one else needs to know how the OS works.
  • angryfirelord, on 07/15/2009, -2/+23Do you wise to fire ze missiles? [Cancel / Allow]
  • FKnight, on 07/14/2009, -1/+20@BrownieMix
    Last I checked, the non-IT people at most businesses, probably including the USPS, don't need to go deep behind the UI that's set up for them to use.

    You don't need to be a Linux geek to be able to use software sitting on top of Linux. If that were the case, hardly anyone would be able to use a website.
  • alamedaman, on 07/14/2009, -0/+19wow COBOL! my dad told me that he used to code in that in college.
  • diablozx9, on 07/14/2009, -2/+19I highly doubt Vista is used on anything other than some desktop systems.
    It wouldn't be used for mission critical systems,, guaranteed.
  • species, on 07/15/2009, -1/+17You wouldn't say that if you had ever coded in it........
  • marx2k, on 07/15/2009, -2/+18Obliterate Planet In 3......2.......1.......*Your License Has Expired. Please Enter New License Key or Call Microsoft For Support*
  • 4AntiStupid, on 07/15/2009, -2/+17According to the most recent Evans survey, Java is well in the lead, C/C++ is second, and C# is 3.
  • v4vishal, on 07/15/2009, -0/+14The Tao gave birth to machine language. Machine language gave birth to the assembler.
    The assembler gave birth to the compiler. Now there are ten thousand languages.
    Each language has its purpose, however humble. Each language expresses the Yin and Yang of software. Each language has its place within the Tao.
    But do not program in COBOL if you can avoid it.
    - The Tao of Programming, 1.3
  • akchrs, on 07/14/2009, -3/+17UPS/FedX tracking is kinda specific. Usually it gives about 5 or 6 places the thing is scanned. USPS's is package picked up, package left in driveway. You could track it with Windows 3.0.
  • Super6, on 07/14/2009, -1/+14Snail mail spam subsidizes the cost of regular mail
  • 4AntiStupid, on 07/14/2009, -1/+13Clever sarcasm I hope?
  • LucasHenderson, on 07/14/2009, -6/+17Now, about the military running Vista....
  • DeathToaster, on 07/14/2009, -2/+12Perhaps, because they need them?
  • vroom101, on 07/13/2009, -0/+10More details in the article "USPS goes open-source with tracking system" by Rutrell Yasin: http://gcn.com/Articles/2009/07/13/Update2-USPS-op ... (gcn.com/Articles/2009/07/13/Update2-USPS-open-source-Product-Tracking-System.aspx?Page=1)
  • RoboDonut, on 07/15/2009, -1/+11"I know I'm going to get dugg way down for this [...] WHO CARES?"
    If you know that you're going to get buried, then you know that people care enough to bury you. Why bother asking, then? Your post is completely illogical.
  • Phocion55, on 07/14/2009, -0/+9Technology word roulette?
  • bungoman, on 07/15/2009, -0/+9As awful as working with cobol must be (I admit I've only seen examples of cobol code but never actually used it) they probably continue to use it because they know their applications work and are close to bug free by now. Porting them to another system introduces all sorts of potential new bugs, but porting them to another language on another system increases the likelihood of something going wrong exponentially. Since the USPS is a pretty critical service; downtime due to your new java/c++/whatever version of your tracking software having a critical bug in it isn't acceptable.
  • Super6, on 07/14/2009, -0/+9That's USPS delivery confirmation. The only service with full tracking is Express Mail. Stupid for sure, but they do have full tracking capabilities. In fact, they have scan information for all packages, not just express, they just don't' display it.
  • RoboDonut, on 07/15/2009, -0/+9Sarcasm? Maybe.
    Clever? Definitely not.
  • pattyhax, on 07/15/2009, -0/+9 identification division.
    program-id. Linux : U.S. Postal Service Gives Stamp of Approval To FOSS.
    author. ostatic.com.


    procedure division.
    000-Main.
    display ' ', erase.
    display ' '.
    display 'I'll miss you COBOL'.
    stop run.
  • SixOrSoPapers, on 07/15/2009, -0/+7I was hoping for a Tux stamp. Don't ask me why.
  • spunker202, on 07/15/2009, -0/+6Why ?
  • species, on 07/15/2009, -0/+6I had to program cobol in college and that was last year ;)
  • inactive, on 07/15/2009, -0/+6Good old Grace Mary Hopper. She was the one who came up with the term "computer bug" and she invented COBOL.
    COBOL was actually an very forward looking language in its day. There was NOTHING else available that could do what it did
    and that's partly why there are still so many COBOL systems in place today. Check out this great page about Grace Mary Hopper, a true American hero!
    http://www.agnesscott.edu/LRIDDLE/WOMEN/hopper.htm
  • diablozx9, on 07/14/2009, -1/+6I used to program that in collage.
    I hated it then and still do now.
  • DarkStar3333, on 07/15/2009, -1/+6Unless the system was perfectly fine and they didn't want/need to change any aspect of it this was simply a cost saving move.

    However the above statement is rarely ever true. This was a band-aid to the problem, the correct way would have been to rewrite the functionality in a modern language. Its time to let COBOL go.
  • shinkou, on 07/15/2009, -1/+6Sometime I just wonder how people chose between Linux and BSD, especially for backend systems. *curious*
  • Kelpesh, on 07/15/2009, -0/+5an ounce of sanity here, an ounce of sanity there, pretty soon it takes a hold.
  • Rekutyn, on 07/15/2009, -0/+5If XML hasn't solved your problem yet, you aren't using enough of it.
  • OmegaNine, on 07/15/2009, -0/+5We will bury you :)
  • RyanXmetal, on 07/15/2009, -0/+4Oh *****...he wen't there.
  • merky1, on 07/15/2009, -0/+4Its called maintenance fees. And the aging Sun environment was probably teetering on the edge of going out of support, which would have forced a platform switch regardless.

    The move to an Intel platform is a no brainer, given that Sun has severely undermined the Sparc processor line with poor delivery and overpriced systems. So given the choice, spending $5K on an intel box, or $20K on a sparc for 1/2 the performance, which would you choose?
  • Jektal, on 07/15/2009, -0/+4Thanks for reminding me how much I hate that language.
  • askantik, on 07/15/2009, -0/+4I went to the oil-change place the other day and they were running their POS on Ubuntu. I was pretty surprised.
  • 4AntiStupid, on 07/15/2009, -1/+5The problem is redevelopment is staggeringly expensive in the face of a large bureaucracy. I pretty much run from a project like this. First it's impossible to find anyone that knows how the current thing works and then you can't get anyone to agree on how they want the new thing to work.

    The funny thing is in this case the OS conversion was completely unnecessary. If it works on Linux it will also work on their existing Solaris boxes. This is IBM playing the management to eliminate Sun/Oracle from the corporate structure so they'll have less competition in the future.
  • mrmod, on 07/15/2009, -0/+4Can they use a mouse and keyboard? Yes? "OK sir, training is done"
  • canthraxp, on 07/15/2009, -1/+5Did anyone read that with the voice of the medic from TF2 on your mind?
  • 7aji, on 07/15/2009, -0/+3They offer the cheapest prices for shipping. They can't be bad.
  • Tenareth, on 07/15/2009, -0/+3Eh, I programmed it for several years (along side C/C++). It has uses when handling structured data.

  • 3242130193, on 07/15/2009, -0/+3*****, seriously? Me and my Python boys gotta get back on top!
  • askantik, on 07/15/2009, -0/+3What is wrong with the USPS? And yes the USPS is a government agency. From Wikipedia:

    "The United States Postal Service (USPS) is an independent agency of the United States government (see 39 U.S.C. § 201) responsible for providing postal service in the United States."

    n00b.
  • wastern, on 07/15/2009, -0/+3Their tracking is useless, I don't even know why they bother. You get a number and it says "no information" for days, then you check and it says "delivered" sure enough its on your porch. Do we really need a tracking system for that?
  • wastern, on 07/15/2009, -0/+2I don't get out much
  • satcomer, on 07/15/2009, -0/+2Well just check where the military get it's approval for approved systems from NSA:

    http://www.nsa.gov/ia/guidance/security_configurat ...

    Notice that Microsoft Server 2008 has NOT been approved yet.
  • martalli, on 07/16/2009, -0/+2Good God
  • diemunkiesdie, on 07/15/2009, -0/+2Bah, I'm disappointed. I thought the article would be about a new stamp issued by the USPS featuring Tux!
  • inactive, on 07/15/2009, -0/+2The USPS calls their system tracking? Compared to UPS or FEDEX their tracking system is more along the lines of guessing.
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