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From: mrgofor@mmm.UUCP (MKR)
Newsgroups: net.rumor
Subject: Re: Computer Horror Stories
Message-ID: <639@mmm.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 19-Mar-86 13:03:25 EST
Article-I.D.: mmm.639
Posted: Wed Mar 19 13:03:25 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 21-Mar-86 06:39:33 EST
References: <11616@watnot.UUCP>
Reply-To: mrgofor@mmm.UUCP (MKR)
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	Okay, one more computer "horror" story - this one's kind of cute.

	We were trying to sell a $60,000 system to a family-run company
whose "computer expert" was in his 60's. We had a program called "Biosum"
that would calculate the biorhytms for two people and add the sine waves
together and tell you how compatible the two people are.

	The day of the biggest demo, the customer brings in his mother
(head of the clan) to see what the company is going to be shelling out
their money for. The customer wanted to show his mother something fun
on the computer, so we fired up Biosum. Unfortunately, the mother had
been born in the 1800's, and you know how sloppy BASIC programmers are
when it comes to date conversions - especially 18 year-old programmers
who think "20 years ago" qualifies as ancient history. When the
program asked for her birthdate and she typed it in (she was just 
starting to get a thrill out of the machine), the program crashed very
ungracefully. Talk about embarrassing...

	They bought the system anyway, but I don't think the matriarch
ever really liked it.

-- 
					--MKR

"The majority of the stupid is invincible and guaranteed for all time. The 
 terror of their tyranny, however, is alleviated by their lack of consistency."
						- Albert Einstein