kangaroos vs. australian jetfighters

HRogge · Post by **HRogge** » 2004-05-25 04:48pm

Something I found on the net:

The reuse of some object-oriented code has caused tactical headaches for Australia's armed forces. As virtual reality simulators assume larger roles in helicopter combat training , programmers have gone to great lengths to increase the realism of the their scenarios, including detailed landscapes and -- in the case of the Northern Territory's Operation Phoenix -- herds of kangaroos (since groups of disturbed animals might well give away a helicopters position).

The head of the Defense Science and Technology Organization's Land Operations/Simulations division reportedly instructed developers to model the local marsupials' movements and reaction to helicopters.

Being efficient programmers, they just re-appropriated some code originally used to model infantry detachments reactions under the same stimuli, changed the mapped icon from a soldier to a kangaroo, and increased the figures' speed of movement.

Eager to demonstrate their flying skills for some visiting American pilots, the hotshot Aussies "buzzed" the virtual kangaroos in low flight during a simulation. The kangaroos scattered, as predicted, and the Americans nodded appreciatively . . . and then did a double-take as the kangaroos reappeared from behind a hill and launched a barrage of stinger missiles at the hapless helicopter. (Apparently the programmers had forgotten the remove "that" part of the infantry coding).

The lesson? Objects are defined with certain attributes, and any new object defined in terms of the old one inherits all the attributes. The embarrassed programmers had learned to be careful when reusing object-oriented code, and the Yanks left with the utmost respect for the Australian wildlife.

Simulator supervisors report that pilots from that point onwards have strictly avoided kangaroos, just as they were meant to.

Dartzap · Post by **Dartzap** » 2004-05-25 04:55pm

Lol, i heard this on"it's been a bad week for..." abot 5 mounths ago, it was indeed one of the strangest things to occur on that show

Alferd Packer · Post by **Alferd Packer** » 2004-05-25 05:19pm

The kangaroos are obviously hiding WMD in their pouches! We must liberate the outback for democracy!

Zoink · Post by **Zoink** » 2004-05-25 05:22pm

In other news I heard that Osama scratched his plan to attack Australia with stinger-wielding terrorists dressed as kangeroos. I wonder if its related?

Arrow · Post by **Arrow** » 2004-05-25 07:32pm

This reminds me of the Kangaroo scene in Crocodile Dundee.

Post by **Gandalf** » 2004-05-25 07:59pm

Zoink wrote:In other news I heard that Osama scratched his plan to attack Australia with stinger-wielding terrorists dressed as kangeroos. I wonder if its related?

You be surprised how much can be hidden in that pouch.

Hobot · Post by **Hobot** » 2004-05-25 10:19pm

Apparently this is not entirely true:

http://www.snopes.com/humor/nonsense/kangaroo.htm

Still pretty funny, though.

Sarevok · Post by **Sarevok** » 2004-05-25 11:25pm

This programmers need to relearn object oriented programming and inheritence.

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2004-05-25 11:51pm

Additionally, as Dr. Grisogono related, "ince we were not at that stage interested in weapons, we had not set any weapon or projectile types, so what the kangaroos fired at us was in fact the default object for the simulation, which happened to be large multicoloured beachballs.

Ah, new military technology is always fun. Take that, maggots! Eat Flying Beachballs of DOOM!!!1