Outside the Beltway

Help Us Identify Migration Bugs

Help us help you by helping us help you.

Matt Bernius
21

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As with any move or migration, not everything ends up in the same place (or necessarily working when you plug it back in again). So far we know that the “edit comment” and “get updates on comments” options are not working. If you notice anything that is broken or are getting any weird behavior from the site, please let us know. This debugging process will take a while–especially as I’m preparing to finish my sabbatical. But we will get to it.

In the meantime, I have a big, expensive no-prize for anyone who, without going to google/wikipedia, can share who is responsible for the term “bug” and how the term came about.

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21 responses to “Help Us Identify Migration Bugs”

  1. Franklin Avatar
    Franklin

    That picture is great 🙂

    My recollection is that there was an actual bug inside a vacuum tube in an early computer that caused a glitch. I don’t remember any more details, or if that’s even accurate.

    2
  2. gVOR10 Avatar
    gVOR10

    @Franklin: I don’t think it was actually inside a vacuum tube, just shorting a couple of terminals. This article, however, traces the term all the way back to Alexander Graham Bell. I’ll split the big prize with you evenly.

    1
  3. Matt Bernius Avatar
    Matt Bernius

    I didn’t realize how far the term goes back, and yes, the story does involve an actual bug. But at least in terms of a “computer bug,” people have yet to get the name of the individual who found and recorded the insect in question.

    1
  4. Kathy Avatar
    Kathy

    @Franklin:
    @gVOR10:

    I’ve heard both about the moth among the vacuum tubes, and that the term bug was used by Edison and others in the XIX century.

    Will we be doing gremlins next?

    2
  5. Michael Cain Avatar
    Michael Cain

    I knew about the Grace Hopper story, but didn’t realize quite how far back the term was in use.

    1
  6. Michael Cain Avatar
    Michael Cain

    The Hopper story involves a Harvard Mark II computer, which was all relay logic (had to look that up).

    When I went to work at Bell Labs in 1978, there were still Number Five Crossbar switching systems in use. Those used relay logic to process calls. I visited a New Jersey Bell central office in order to see one in action. 20 racks of relay logic running during a busy period are crazy loud.

    2
  7. CSK Avatar
    CSK

    A minor issue, but I have to type out my screen name and email addie in the relevant sections when I comment.

    1
  8. Kathy Avatar
    Kathy

    about actual bugs, when you click on Read All Posts at the bottom the page, you do get a new page with all the posts until July 22nd or so. But then there’s no link for a next page of older posts, nor numbered links to specific pages.

    I don’t know how many others read through old posts.

    1
  9. Mister Bluster Avatar
    Mister Bluster

    @CSK:..minor issue…

    This is not a universal glitch as my name and Email fields populate with a click for each space as they did before the Great Migration. I don’t know how any of this works however I think it may be a function of my Google Chrome browser.

    3
  10. CSK Avatar
    CSK

    @Mister Bluster:

    I’m using Google Chrome as well.

  11. Mister Bluster Avatar
    Mister Bluster

    @CSK:..Chrome…

    I don’t know how any of this works however I think it may be a function of my Google Chrome browser.

    I should stick with my default position.

    1
  12. OzarkHillbilly Avatar
    OzarkHillbilly

    Ummmm… can you give me a hint of the difference between a migration bug and the usual %$##$(+_(+_(_)*$%$%$@%) (+_)*&&RRP{(($%$(+_()+_&%WE%^%)*!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! crap I deal with most every day?

    1
  13. mattbernius Avatar
    mattbernius

    @Michael Cain:

    I knew about the Grace Hopper story, but didn’t realize quite how far back the term was in use.

    Bing Bing Bing! That was the final bit I was looking for: Grace Hopper who racked!

    https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/worlds-first-computer-bug/

    The story, apparently building off of a Steve Jobs type character (I have feelings about TE) from the first half of the century, is a great one including the preservation of the bug’s remains.

  14. Just Another Ex-Republican Avatar
    Just Another Ex-Republican

    That story about the moth at Harvard cannot be responsible for the use of the term “bug.” Even the comment in the logbook itself: “First actual case of bug being found” rather clearly implies the term was in common use by then and someone was just being amused about it being an ACTUAL bug this time.

    2
  15. just nutha Avatar
    just nutha

    @CSK: I get automatic fill-in, but on my phone it comes with using whatever Android demands and on my desktop, it’s a feature of microsquash, so I don’t have any control over it or knowledge of hows or whys.

  16. Franklin Avatar
    Franklin

    @gVOR10: Wow, that article was indeed quite interesting, thanks for the link!

  17. Kenny Avatar
    Kenny

    Matt,

    The RSS feed doesn’t seem to be S-ing.

    The address for Feedburner looks the same, but I haven’t gotten anything since the Friday flip-switching.

    1
  18. James Joyner Avatar
    James Joyner

    @CSK: Oddly, my name never fills in automatically and I don’t think it ever has—certainly not in years.

    @Kathy: I’m not sure what drives the build on that.

    @Kenny: I logged into Feedburner and hit “refresh.” It’s up to date now; we’ll see if it continues to work.

  19. Kenny Avatar
    Kenny

    @James Joyner:

    Looks like that did the trick. All of the posts that were published in the interim made it through this morning.

  20. Matt Bernius Avatar
    Matt Bernius

    @James Joyner:

    @CSK: Oddly, my name never fills in automatically and I don’t think it ever has—certainly not in years.

    I think that’s because you are typically logged into the WordPress authoring interface. Also TY for fixing feedburner!

    TY to everyone for reporting all these little bugs. I’m logging all of them.

  21. Michael Cain Avatar
    Michael Cain

    @James Joyner:

    Oddly, my name never fills in automatically and I don’t think it ever has—certainly not in years.

    Ha! Another problem that I would never be aware of. I have a piece of JavaScript that runs on every page I download. The main purpose is to override font families, sizes, weights, etc, so the pages I visit are much more consistent in term of formatting. At some point I added a bit of code that fills in my name and email at sites where I comment regularly. OTB is one of those.

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