From: lex@cc.gatech.edu   
      
   >> Right, but so long as the requirements are moderate, then increasing   
   >> these specs should simply require more of some components without   
   >> changing the overall design.  It takes little design effort and only   
   >> moderate $$'s to simple have *more* board space, or *more* shielding,   
   >> or *more* overall mass.  It only becomes a problem if you increase the   
   >> requirements by so much that you need a totally new design approach to   
   >> power generation or shielding or whatever.   
   >   
   > No no no.  I don't design space probes, but it's obvious that this   
   > argument is not correct. You don't get to increase these specs at all,   
   > they are constraints.   
      
   If the constraints are fixed, then possibly, though even then there   
   may well be enough space within the constraints to ease up on the   
   programmers and put in a garbage collector.   
      
   But why would the constraints be fixed?  Surely these probes go   
   through an initial design phase where it is sketched out how much   
   power will be generated and how much shielding will be around and how   
   much mass is expected and so on.  During that initial sketch, I see no   
   reason they could not consider copious CPU power as a design option.   
      
   I am curious what field you work on where constraints are so tight?   
   In university classes the professors I've seen can barely get through   
   a description of the waterfall method without poking holes in it.  As   
   well, they usually start their description with a disclaimer like   
   "here's a simplistic model that we will start with".   
      
      
      
   > Hire a team of GOOD programers, much cheaper.   
      
   Yes, but that's an independent issue.  Anyway, if you want to have   
   really good programmers, it helps to give them less to do.  The more   
   work that must be done, the more programmers you need to hire, and the   
   harder it will be to find programmers of any particular productivity.   
      
   -Lex   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)