Artemis II astronaut: 'I have two Microsoft Outlooks, and neither one of those are working'

Many a frustrated user has sworn they'll launch Microsoft Outlook into space, but NASA has actually done it – on a journey around the Moon, where it's now causing problems for astronauts. The astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft currently circling the Earth are taking care of a bunch of housekeeping tasks, including getting …

[Doctor Syntax]

The Outlook is not good.

[C R Mudgeon]

It is decidedly so.

[Will Godfrey]

It never was!

[frankvw]

At least they've got the toilet working again...

[Ken Shabby]

Is that where they put the captain’s log!

[Arthur the cat]

At least they've got the toilet working again...

So it's easier fixing shit hardware than shit software.

[NATTtrash]

"I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that"

[teknopaul]

Too true

My megacorp boss wont allow me to use thunderbird or any other client, so its web interface only. Supposedly it's more "secure" if Google read your emails as well.

Top tip : dont reply to outlook emails, they'll send a DM if its important.

[Steve Davies 3]

What do you expect

when you are beyond the clouds????

Mines the one with the Observers book of Clouds in the pocket.

[Richard Pennington 1]

It's a safety feature ...

You can't open the Windows on a spacecraft.

Not even if you ask the Copilot.

[Anonymous Coward]

I have said for 20 years

that while all this MS-Googly-Apple shite is all very flash, there is no fucking way I would trust it to do anything critical.

A lot of people owe me a beer for proof positive.

Luckily, discovering today is a national holiday somewhere I can't pronounce isn't essential for space flight.

[dsch]

Re: I have said for 20 years

"Luckily, discovering today is a national holiday somewhere I can't pronounce isn't essential for space flight."

Read this a few times and I've figured out what it means: This user is offended by online calendars that contain holidays that aren't "Christmas".

[The Oncoming Scorn]

Re: I have said for 20 years

This must be a Thursday, I never could get the hang of Thursdays.

Meanwhile its Good Friday in Moombooldool & Wangkatjungka, so there's your holiday.

Icon - Australian Golden Throat Charmer.

[Michael Hoffmann]

Re: I have said for 20 years

And also in... <belts out entire I've Been Everywhere, Aussie Edition song>

[MachDiamond]

Re: I have said for 20 years

"<belts out entire I've Been Everywhere, Aussie Edition song>"

Kevin Bloody Wilson version?

[Chipwidget]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Wollongong?

[MachDiamond]

Re: I have said for 20 years

"Wollongong?"

Meekathera, Meekathera, Meekathera, Jail, Meekathera, Hospital, Jail, Meekathera..............................

[bbqq]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Dapto

[Benegesserict Cumbersomberbatch]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Upvoted for the Norman Gunston reference

[Wally Dug]

Re: I have said for 20 years

I would really love to upvote you, but at time of writing, somewhat serendipitously, you have 42 upvotes, and I'd hate to unbalance the universe.

Have a cup of tea on me.

[PB90210]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Thursday was Maundy Thursday, so traditionally half day for civil servants.

Used to be the day that the King would wash the feet of the poor... but at some point they said "sod that" and decided it was better to give out cash instead

[AndrueC]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Maybe they are from Trumpistan and are just angry at the concept of people having holidays.

[iron]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Or the concept of people having anything and perhaps being happy.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Almost ...

The original comment arises because the poster is angry that there is somewhere that is NOT the 'US of A' and therefore there may be things that are NOT like the poster expects including language, spellings etc.

The thought process (after a number of assumptions regarding ability to have thoughts) is that the world would be a much better place if it ALL was just like the US of A ... specifically just like the US of A that the poster knows !!!

This mirrors the thought processes of a certain POTUS !!!

:)

[WSWS]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Or, maybe, irritated that they are having information that is completely irrelevant to them pushed into their calendar, competing for space with the things that they actually do care about? With all the information that Google or Microsoft have about you, you'd think that they could tell which holidays are relevant in a user's country, no? You however seem pretty offended that someone might object to having useless information polluting their feed.

[dsch]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Angry Man On The Internet, more at 10.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: I have said for 20 years

AMOTI yells at cloud (computing)

[PB90210]

Re: I have said for 20 years

It can be difficult enough to follow the correct holidays WITHIN a country, let alone other countries!

I once discovered an intranet page covering Scottish local holidays and which areas were covered by them... there were dozens of entries. I assume there was also a Northern Ireland version, but certainly not an English one... we only celebrate things like cheese rolling, nettle eating and conkers at weekends and on bank holidays

(the company actually switched to adding local holidays to your total leave allowance because it made leave accounting easier)

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: I have said for 20 years

So, all of them?

[joypar]

Linux,

as a clone of Unix, is always the correct answer for a user OS. Yes always, and yes everywhere.

[LucreLout]

Re: Linux,

Lol. Have we reached the year of Linux on the desktop yet? Been waiting since the 90s and it looks less likely to happen now than at any time before.

Android yes, proper Linux no. The desktop is dying out now so if it's ever coming out beds to be quick.

[NoneSuch]

Re: Linux,

"Lol. Have we reached the year of Linux on the desktop yet?"

My desktop has, for many years. Linux is not for everyone and many of the current Windows users should absolutely stay where they are.

[frankvw]

Re: Linux,

"...many of the current Windows users should absolutely stay where they are."

In space?

[Arthur the cat]

Re: Linux,

Linux is not for everyone and many of the current Windows users should absolutely stay where they are.

Linux is not for everyone and Windows 11 is rapidly catching up.

T,FTFY.

[HereIAmJH]

Re: Linux,

Have we reached the year of Linux on the desktop yet?

systemd says, hold my beer.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

It befuddles me that you unflinchingly carried out the insanity of referring to GNU as "proper Linux" (you could even save everyone from the confusion and save yourself the typing too and just write GNU to mean GNU - but you won't).

Android uses more or less the same versions of Linux as GNU/Linux with a few patches - the difference is that Android lacks GNU.

The year of GNU/Linux on the desktop was in 1995 or so - as you could use a recent computer practically in freedom again, alas that freedom was savagely ripped away with the inclusion of the first proprietary program of many into Linux starting in 1996.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

Linux is not a clone of Unix or even of a Unix kernel - the only similarities it has with Unix kernel's is that it's proprietary software and it uses a monolithic design.

GNU's Not Unix originally started as a free clone of Unix, but now it's almost completely different to Unix.

[werdsmith]

Re: Linux,

Very few give a fuck about the GNU information Eric. And your feeble crusade makes it even worse.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

Very few care about the facts, but it's incredible that I struck a nerve in someone who seriously cares that someone could read a comment that contains the facts.

[Hubert Cumberdale]

Re: Linux,

Maybe you should get a girlfriend. Or a boyfriend. Actually, just getting a friend would do. Or maybe even just look out of the window. Anything to stop you spouting this stuff and confirming the worst suspicions of anyone who has ever looked at Microsoft/Apple/Google alternatives and thought, "Hmm, not if I have to have anything to do with guys like that". You're clearly intelligent, and that could likely be put to some good use somewhere. But you're not helping anyone by doing what you seem to be repeatedly doing. Over. And. Over. Again.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

I have no interest in such pointless trifles.

I don't have windows.

The entire idea is that free replacements are to be developed - not proprietary alternatives.

You don't get the best OS and the best software by having a common, weak mind.

It's a feature, not a bug if those who can't help but to ruin things further with more proprietary software, choose not to do so.

[Hubert Cumberdale]

Re: Linux,

If you don't have windows, it's probably time you left the basement.

[kmorwath]

Re: Linux,

Linux and GNU are full clones of Unix - just like MS-DOS was initially a clone of CP/M. They were designed to run Unix applications without having to pay for the licenses, so Stallman could spend those money for himself. Sure, today Linux has diverged somehow, and there aren't only POSIX APIs, but still a lot of APIs are there to run Unix applications.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

>designed to run Unix applications without having to pay for the licenses, so Stallman could spend those money for himself

It's incredible what slander people make up.

The goal of GNU is eliminating proprietary software, thus you couldn't make a wronger claim than to claim it was about being able to run proprietary software for Unix without extra costs.

Prior to deciding to develop GNU, rms never even used Unix, not for a minute (he used the Incompatible Timesharing System (ITS) until the PDP-10 hardware it ran on stopped working).

The reason he decided to develop a free as in freedom replacement for Unix had nothing to do with money - it was for practical reasons alone - all OS's available for current computers at the time were proprietary, but Unix had a modular design that allowed developing a free replacement, one piece at a time.

While Unix rent cost a fortune, the university had already rented a copy of Unix and while it was the case that the eventual result of the GNU project, was the university no longer needing to pay such rent to have an OS, he never received any of such saved money (he quit his job at MIT prior to starting GNU).

He has never been greedy for money - eventually the Free Software Foundation could pay him a salary for his work, but he determined he didn't need it, so he didn't take a salary.

>Sure, today Linux has diverged somehow, and there aren't only POSIX APIs, but still a lot of APIs are there to run Unix applications.

Linux doesn't implement POSIX API's - what Linux implements is similar but incompatible /proc & /dev interfaces, a custom /sys interface and has a bunch of SYSCALLs that can do tasks POSIX kernel's are meant to do, as well as tasks no POSIX kernel can do.

If there is a proprietary libc that works with a proprietary Unix kernel, it won't work with Linux without it being ported to Linux's incompatible interfaces (such was tactically avoided by the compromise of licensing glibc LGPLv2.1-or-later).

While GNU has implemented the good parts of POSIX, it has not implemented the bad parts and also many GNU extensions are implemented too - GNU's Not posUx - programs for GNU need to support GNU.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Linux,

They were designed to run Unix applications without having to pay for the licenses, so Stallman could spend those money for himself.

Do you have any proof for what is otherwise rather close to defamation? I have not really seen a financial motive there, also because the man has (had?) tenure.

I am no friend of Stallman as a person (I've met him twice and I hope I'll be spared a repeat), but it's fair to acknowledge that he did a serious amount of the heavy lifting that made Linux possible beyond a kernel. If the man had a personality that was compatible with the rest of the world he may have even received wider acknowledgement for it.

That said, he provided the start. From then on there have been contributions from a lot of other extremely capable people.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

It's not close to defamation - it is intentional defamation.

There is endless defamation online about Stallman, because people always believe the claims without checking the facts.

Yes, his extreme personality makes weak minds uncomfortable.

He didn't just provide the start and leave - he carefully maintained it on the way, tactically making the right calls - although he doesn't go around calling it Stallmanx - he gives credit when credit is due.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Linux,

Yes, his extreme personality makes weak minds uncomfortable.

That has nothing to do with weakness. Linux came into existence because quite a lot of people managed to get on with each other and built something fantastic together. Even if your personality is defective you can choose to get along with others. Stallman evidently chooses not to, and as such should stop complaining about the consequences thereof.

I'd also like to point out that Linux isn't called that because Linus Torvalds made that choice - someone else did and it stuck.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

Linux could not have even existed if Stallman didn't have gotten GNU together piece by piece, getting along with others (being a very good developer requires having a strong mind).

Linux only came into existence because of Stallman and GNU.

It is impossible to write a working kernel without at least a compiler, a toolchain and a buildsystem.

Before Stallman decided to sit down and write a C compiler and release it as free software (something that had *not* been done before), there was no free software C compiler - C compilers had restrictions on usage and cost a fortune.

GNU developed and released GCC, GNU binutils, GNU make, GNU diff, GNU patch and much more, making it possible to start developing Linux.

At the start, Linux got nowhere, as Linus's choice to use a proprietary license meant that GNU was not willing to support a new proprietary kernel and due to how GNU and other software didn't run, few were interested (Linus went and did a dirty port of Bash etc, but it didn't run very well).

After Linus attended a speech by Stallman, he decided to relicense to the GNU Public License version 2 ambiguous, which he admits was the best choice he ever made (but he didn't say why).

The reason why it was the best choice he made, as Linux then being free software convinced the GNU developers to port every last GNU program to work with Linux - resulting in GNU/Linux.

While GNU/Linux distributions did boot, those had functionality issues due to deficiencies in Linux - which attracted thousands of developers to go and fix up Linux - resulting in a very successful development model that has made Linux very popular.

After Linus has seen many years of success, he of course processed to pay back GNU by betraying it, by allowing Linux to become proprietary software again, by allowing the first of many proprietary programs to be added in 1996 and then later in 2000 after more development success, betrayed GNU again, by specifying that the license was GPLv2-only(+proprietary).

Linus's kernel is called Linux because of some weird cult of personality formed that saw that you could get Linus and add x on the end to make "Linux", which sounds like "Linus's Unix", which is a convenient mental shortcut, even though that's totally incorrect - Linus's kernel he wanted to call Freax is generally used with GNU's Not Unix.

Linux is still an acceptable name for Linus's kernel, but that just wasn't enough for the cult of personality - they continue to this day obsessively giving credit to Linus, for GNU and software completely unrelated to Linux, that happens to also run on GNU/Linux.

The only thing that Linus doesn't seem to get much credit for is Android, as even though that use the same Linux, that isn't I quote "proper Linux" (it lacks GNU).

Actually, when I think about the "getting along" part, Linus is much worse at that than Richard, as he has many times on the Linux mailing list carried out personal attacks, such as I quote; "Of course, I'd also suggest that whoever was the genius who thought it was a good idea to read things ONE FUCKING BYTE AT A TIME with system calls for each byte should be retroactively aborted. Who the fuck does idiotic things like that? How did they noty die as babies, considering that they were likely too stupid to find a tit to suck on?".

Meanwhile, I don't remember seeing a case where Richard has directed a personal attack at anyone - while he has made many socially awkward comments about things not adequately explained to him and he also often wished for his own death out of despair, that is not a personal attack.

Now I think about it, Richard tries to pull freedom together as best he can, while Linus tries to rip freedom apart and replace it with more and more proprietary software, seeking more popularity.

[very angry man]

Re: Linux,

are you trying to put people OFF linux?

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

Ideally people would be put off that proprietary kernel and go with the free replacement instead - GNU Linux-libre.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Linux,

God no, let's not go down that Stallman rabbit hole.

Sometimes I wonder if the man got stuck in the hippie era and smokes too much dodgy stuff, but most of the time I'm pretty sure of it..

[Eric 9001]

Re: Linux,

He smokes pure unadulterated freedom, not proprietary drugs.

[kmorwath]

Re: Linux,

You know that smoking freedom means burning it... but that's exactly what Stallman would do -. there is only one freedom for him, his version of freedom, to which the whole world should abide.

Look closely at any prophet/guru, and you will see the greed man.

[DS999]

Who says this is for anything critical?

I saw a brief video of astronauts tossing an iPhone around, I'm pretty sure that the iPhone is not being used for anything mission critical. It probably is being used to contact friends and family. After all, what's the point of going round the Moon if you can't take selfies in front of a window overlooking the Moon and post "hard day at work" on Instagram?

[frankvw]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

"I'm pretty sure that the iPhone is not being used for anything mission critical."

If all their other devices all run Microslop, it may have to be.

[DS999]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

If all their other devices all run Microslop, it may have to be

"Houston, the flight console computer has blue screened again and we've lost thruster control. Permission to use the Artemis flight console app on Bob's iPhone instead?"

[jake]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

The navigation computers (there are four of them, for redundancy) are IBM Power machines; the OS and other software is provided by Honeywell.

[AndrueC]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

provided by Honeywell.

Bloody hell. I hope it does a better job of predicting system responses than my T4 thermostat. My T4 apparently thinks my central heating can raise the temperature of my lounge from 16c to 19.5c in less than an hour. I've had to resort to telling it I want the specified temperature an hour ahead of the actual target and even then it sometimes doesn't quite make it.

Such a shame I had to replace the old CM67 - that was prepared to advance the central heating system anything up to three hours to get where it was programmed.

[DS999]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

If it annoys you maybe replace it? Thermostats are cheap. I just replaced my similarly vintage thermostat with an Ecobee (mainly due to incentives from my utility which will essentially pay for it in a year) and it has no problem getting the temperature to the assigned set point at or before the assigned time. It even takes the outside temperature (which it gets off the internet) into account, since obviously it would take longer to give me a 5F rise when it is -10F outside vs when it is 50F outside.

The nicest thing about it is that it came with a separate wireless temperature/occupancy sensor that I put in my finished basement, so it can take into account that not everywhere in the house is the same temperature as the upstairs hallway the thermostat is located in, making for a more comfortable house.

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

Sometimes you need to go back one step to more reliable and controllable timers... (yes, no clickable link on purpose)

https://www.amazon.de/Theben-0260030-theben-timer-Steckdosen-Schaltuhr-Zeitprogrammstecker/dp/B000ONPX9G

https://www.amazon.com/HBN-Mechanical-Electrical-Intervals-Lighting/dp/B0D7ZS6PGK

[AndrueC]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

I'm not too keen on smart thermostats as I feel most of their features are oversold. For instance I don't want my thermostat to stop heating the house until it detects me coming back because it's usually only a half hour journey to get back and in half an hour my heating won't achieve all that much. Yes it'll save me money but mainly because I return to a cool or even a cold house.

My life (like most people's I suspect) follows a fairly predictable schedule so I don't need anything clever from a thermostat. My old CM67 did a sterling job. I told it when I wanted the lounge at a certain temperature and it'd happily oblige. On occasions starting the heating over two hours ahead of the target time in order to get there.

Unfortunately after nearly 20 years of service it began to misbehave so I decided to replace it with current equivalent - the T4. This 'stat has never given my heating longer than hour to reach target. I did read in some reviews that the maximum advance it will use is two hours (but it's not that clear and it seems to derive from how 'delayed start' works rather than 'optimum start'). It's ability to learn appears to be severely limited. It does vary start times but by a pathetic amount. It might miss the target temp by 2c and the time by an hour. So what it does it do the next day? It advances the start time by ten minutes (I actually have USB thermometer so can check).

So yeah, I might look into going something more high-tech for next winter but I shouldn't have to :(

[DS999]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

You don't have to enable any of that fancy stuff, and anyway such a feature would rely on your thermostat having access to your location (i.e. an app on your phone with location tracking enabled) which I believe most Reg readership would recognize for the privacy nightmare that it is.

I just let mine stay on schedule regardless of when I leave, unless I will be gone overnight or longer. In that case now I can turn it down/up to more energy saving temp, and use the app on my phone to put it back to normal schedule an hour before I arrive. That's a little better the old thermostat where I did the same thing, except that I came home to a too cold or too warm house and had to wait a bit for it to be made comfortable. Which wasn't a big deal, but now that I have the ability to control it via the internet I might as well take advantage of it to arrive at a comfortable temperature.

Ecobee seems to have a pretty good privacy policy but there are some features that are potentially privacy compromising no matter what promises a company gives you for privacy - and we know those are at best only good on the day you read them. They could be bought out [*] by Amazon or Google tomorrow and that privacy policy would see major changes! One thing I did was to disable the microphone in the thermostat. Yes it has one, which it uses to allow it to be tied into Siri/Alexa/etc. Not sure if that integration is limited by telling the thermostat to change temperature by voice (which seems stupid to me) or it allows it to act like another Alexa device for people who have already sold their privacy to the devil. Either way I didn't need/want that.

[*] they are currently owned by Generac, so not a company that has a big stake in collecting and selling personal data

[Will Godfrey]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

Why does anyone use a general thermostat?

Home heating works best (and most economically) when rooms are running at a constant temperature with a simple passive thermostat on each radiator/ heat source, with each room maintained at the appropriate temperature for its function..

[Eric 9001]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

It is devastating that on a mission is meant to be the peak of humanities achievements, the astronauts unthinkingly brought along the deepest trench of humanity - windows computers and iphones!

It's too bad I'll get arrested for "missile offenses" for showing them how it's done.

[Someone Else]

Re: Who says this is for anything critical?

Why in the actual fuck does anyone need Outlook on a Moon mission?

_{...of either kind...}

[Richard 12]

Re: I have said for 20 years

It's a national holiday in Wetwang and Worcestershire.

[Someone Else]

Re: I have said for 20 years

Does that mean I can't use the sauce on my burger today?

[ParlezVousFranglais]

So NASA can still talk to Voyager 1 & 2 at over 13 billion miles away and nearly 50 years after launch, but get Microsoft involved and you lose your comms in less than a day

I just have no words...

[The Oncoming Scorn]

Zoom needs to download a update, any idea of download speeds while "halfway" to the moon?

[Quando]

Better than my Virgin Media (lack of) connection. Which has been broken for a couple of days, and the estimated fix date has gone from today to the 8th April. I expect Artemis will be back home before it is working properly.

[TheTut]

Virgin?

Even when they say Virgin you should still use protection.

[IGotOut]

@quando

"and the estimated fix date has gone from today to the 8th April"

Ha, ha, ha.

Good luck.

The last time I had to deal with those incompetent morons was with my parents.

I found the issue in less than 30 seconds of looking at the router (clock sync issue at the exchange meant it was resetting EXACTLY every 5 minutes)

First the 15 calls the the useless Indian call centre .

Then engineer comes out replaces wall socket (even he said it wouldn't work after I told him the issue).

I then told the call centre that neighbours were having the same issue (still insisted on rebooting the TiVo box despite the entire internet dropping).

Another engineer came out replaced the external wiring.

I once again pointed out several other people I know had the same issue. Ignored.

Phoned up help desk again and had found out that everyone having issues were old Telewest customer and even people on a different street had same issue.

Ignored.

Several engineers came out and started working on the street box AND Virgin had sent out engineers to a neighbours house to fix the same issue, unaware that they were already working on the street box for the same issue .

Pissed off I went and spoke to the guys.

They were saying it was probably down to the hot weather.

So when I said how come it happens 24/7 they were stumped.

I told them everything and said it was an exchange issue, they were adamant it wasn't and it was the street box.

So when I pointed out that it was only the original Telewest customers affected, that our phone numbers were only a few digits apart and that we were on different streets, they couldn't give an answer.

The issue was resolved, by everyone leaving Virgin.

Source: I did telecoms for 20 years and I can spot an clock sync issue in minutes.

[werdsmith]

What a hero.

[hairydog]

The engineer replaces the socket for your benefit.

If an engineer cant find a fault, the customer gets charged over £100 for the fallout, so they 'find' a fault in the socket, replace it and you aren't charged.

Doesn't fix the problem, but it saves you money.

[bombastic bob]

sounds like me trying to get long/old/dirty phone lines repaired for the 12th time on my old DSL connection, which was managed by Earthlink out of the AT&T office 15 wire miles away. Eventually I learned to report the problem as "noise on the phone line" instead of an internet problem and "oh by the way it affects my DSL". Now I have AT&T high speed (very fast DSL but only 1 wire mile to fiber optic gear) with no voice on a brand new wire which means I get reasonably fast service, and it's AI phone-hell but no thick accents or boiler plates. And very few problems. [and it's a /29 which works very nicely]

[frankvw]

"...any idea of download speeds while "halfway" to the moon?"

Well, I can make an educated guess: latency will be just over 1.25 seconds ("halfway" defined as the midpoint between earth and moon at average distance) so using standard TCP will be hell. And last I checked, Outlook did not have native support for proper high latency protocols like MAVlink. You can optimize some of it to some extent, and I imagine NASA has anticipated this and will run Compound TCP with large send/ack windows over a MAVlink-like protocol (they have done this sort of thing before, after all) but still. Trying to use Outlook from cis-lunar space is brave. Very brave. The 'nauts deserve one of these. ---->

[bombastic bob]

older satellite systems' handling of latency issues

there are older systems that do a lot of buffering and local 'ack' packet handling to try and mitigate the latency. I think older satellite internet applied some similar technology. My guess is that THIS SYSTEM IS UNDER TEST and Micros~1's software is fighting it somehow... so maybe the SCREAMING from the world at Micros~1 that their FORCED UPDATES are RIDICULOUS might FINALLY STICK!!!

[AndrueC]

It's called the Simple Mail Transport Protocol, not the Space Mail Transport Protocol!

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

IF their Outlook would use "Simple Mail Transport Protocol" it would have worked. But no, they have to use a "more reliable feature rich" option.

[bombastic bob]

not to spoil your joke but mail readers use POP3 and IMAP for reading, and only use SMTP for sending...

now we need "space-" acronym versions for the others...

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

You don't actually spoil it, but it is a logic follow up that you don't combine SMTP with Outlooks five thousand methods of syncing with a mailstorage-server, but POP or IMAP.

[Anonymous Coward]

Well the "I" in IMAP would obviously be "Interstellar".

I originally thought "Interplanetary", but I am aiming at making it future proof :).

As for transport, if you're really planning to use TCP you better use very large packets and a massive TTL or you'll have a lot of resends to cope with. Or use UDP and come up with a different way to deal with lost packets.

However, isn't that something that has already been solved for satellites that are a bit further away?

And no, you don't use Microsoft's proprietary formats for something like that. Imagine Voyager 1 having to upgrade every time MS decides to mess with the competition by changing the format once again - we've seen enough of that nonsense with Office in general.

Also, you really, REALLY do not want the daily terabytes of updates that Microsoft needs clogging up your comms, and its telemetry would drown out the actual useful shuttle telemetry. Just say no.

[Anonymous Coward]

Clippy your help is needed !!!

"I just have no words..."

... or bytes or nibbles or bits ... it would seem !!!

Don't worry a quick 'chkdsk /f' ... followed by a 'DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth' then 'sfc /scannow' should fix everything !!!

:)

[Michael Hoffmann]

Re: Clippy your help is needed !!!

"Don't worry a quick 'chkdsk /f' ... followed by a 'DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth' then 'sfc /scannow' should fix everything !!!"

... and all communication and contact was lost. They were never heard from again.

Though one of these was seen briefly: --->

[bombastic bob]

Re: Clippy your help is needed !!!

I assume you were being snarky

[bombastic bob]

I just have no words...

actually THOSE words (entire post) do very well!

[NapTime ForTruth]

Isn't it odd...

...that we keep using software that we know isn't reliable, run by companies we know we can't trust because they abuse us at every opportunity and blame us for the abuse.

It's like intimate partner violence at worldwide - and now spacewide - scale.

We need to break the habit, we need to get out, and once we do we need to help others to safety.

This is a moral imperative.

[Rich 2]

Re: Isn't it odd...

And why anyone would think using outlook (or ANY Microslop product) on a fookin space rocket is a good idea is unbelievable

[werdsmith]

Re: Isn't it odd...

Whilst as usual Register commenters are filling their Tena pants about MS, is there any information about what the problem actually is?

Outlook depends on a lot of external stuff, most of which is unlikely to be MS.

[hairydog]

Re: Isn't it odd...

Outlook depends on stuff, yes. There are standards, which Outlook mostly ignores, so what it depends on /is/ likely to be Microsoft

[Paul Hovnanian]

Re: Isn't it odd...

"Outlook depends on stuff, yes."

I am by no means an Outlook wizard. But in my travels, occasionally helping people with balky Windows software (of which Outlook is), it is my impression that it really doesn't like to be left alone with no connection to a backend server. That being said, it would appear to be a bad selection for use in space. Where something in orbit loses sight of its ground based link once an hour or so.

I'd hope that the IT wizards at NASA would have provided an in-capsule server of sorts. To handle the uplink-downlink batch transfers and keep the Outlook clients "happy" with a continuous connection. But I didn't spot any MCSE certification among the crew. You just don't deploy a suite of Azure services without a full staff on call.

[Contrex]

No-one can HEAR you scream, I believe, is the quote?

[Rory B Bellows]

Webmail?

Unless Edge is also not working. Hopefully someone installed another browser for backup.

Joke alert, but also not a joke.

[stiine]

Re: Webmail?

They're nowhere near the edge. They're floating in the middle somewhere.

[ChrisMarshallNY]

Thou Hast A Typo

https://www.theregister.com/2026/04/02/artemis_astronauts_microsoft_outlook_broken/#:~:text=a%20bunch%20of-,housekeepign,-tasks%2C%20including%20getting

"housekeepign"

[David 132]

Re: Thou Hast A Typo

There's a corrections link at the top of this very page.

Send corrections

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

And the third is broken as well

Outlook Web Access.

Man, this is getting weirder and weirder. I was lucky today: My outlook (classic) on the work Laptop worked. I must be the exception.

[Richard 12]

Re: And the third is broken as well

Classic mostly works. Except that it forgets the window arrangement every time it updates, and doesn't allow window arrangement on mixed-DPI systems.

And occasionally becomes invisible.

[M.V. Lipvig]

Re: And the third is broken as well

Lucky you. I have to use that on my work machine (last M$ device in my house) and I have to shut it down and reopen it if I want ti see new email. Once it finishes its initial download, it refuses to check again. And no need for suggestions, the company has it locked down tighter than a duck's arse so I can't even try anything. Quite frankly, I'm surprised they allow me to close and restart Outlook at all.

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

Re: And the third is broken as well

You company's IT department obviously sucks :D... Or the C-suite repulsed the good IT parts out of the company you work for - probably 'cause they made sense and dared to object the C-suite. (The latter is a wild speculation, but how close am I ?)

[JWLong]

I Have NO OutLook...........

........and it is working just as I expected......as in........

Not at All, just the way I want it to be.........

[theDeathOfRats]

Re: I Have NO OutLook...........

And I MUST SEND A MESSAGE IN ALL CAPS!

[Boris the Cockroach]

Well they are

in the right place to nuke the site from orbit.

Only way to be sure ...

[ComicalEngineer]

Thunderbird has been strangely unaffected ... perhaps they need Thunderbird 3 to deliver an update.

I further note that Thunderbird 5 never had any such problems. ;-)

[that one in the corner]

Artemis seems closer to Thunderbird 3 than 5 - especially as 3 has had unfortunate comms problems.

Perhaps if we threatened to send the Microsoft Outlook team up the mountain to fix their problem, as Brains needed to, they'd take the need for reliability more seriously.

[Richard Pennington 1]

Thunderbird doesn't have problems ...

That's because Thunderbirds are GO.

[Antron Argaiv]

As someone who has spent over 8 hours since last Friday, on AT&T's help line, trying to get SWMBO's new Apple watch to accept an eSIM from its iPhone sibling, I feel their pain.

Best I can figure, is that AT&T's eSIM servers give you ONE download, and then consider the SIM to be installed, whether or not it actually is. The people on the help line are solicitous and knowledgeable, but I believe they are contractors, since they do not seem to be able do very much involving AT&T's servers without putting me on hold and calling someone. Because they have no authority to work with the backend databases, we have been trying different approaches and that's been quite time consuming.

One last try tomorrow afternoon at a physical AT&T location and I'm giving up. I am quite tired of looking at the damn watch and seeing "NO SIM" staring back at me. How hard is it to transfer a fucking file by Bluetooth into a device?

(oh, and, yes, I have tried turning them both off and on again...several tens of times at this point)

[Paul Herber]

Have you tried calling the Microsoft helpline? We all know it would be an utterly pointless thing to do and they would be useless at helping you but at least you could then swear at them instead which might make you feel better and you could report back here how it all went and we could all have a good laugh about it.

Actually, they might tell you to turn it off and back on again.

[Antron Argaiv]

Update:

After spending 4 hours at an AT&T corporate cellphone store last night, and going through all the steps (multiple times) of attempting to transfer an eSIM to the watch again, then returning the watch to the Apple store down the way, and having the same problem with the new watch (sealed box, opened in front of the AT&T employee), they finally decided the problem was worth escalating. And, no surprise, the level 2 guy was unable to make it work! I now have a case number, and promised resolution date.

...and a crapload of new charges on my next AT&T bill, due to the "let's open a new plan and try again" ideas from the service folks.

TBH, I started suspecting it was a software problem after the first three telephone support people couldn't get an eSIM to transfer to the watch, but I am a patient (some might say, stubborn) person, and figured my best chance to get this working was to maliciously follow the process until it was obviously not going to achieve the desired result.

[Swordfish1]

Simples

I use Thunderbird - no issues

[llaryllama]

Re: Simples

It also seems a lot more appropriate having a Thunderbird strapped to the pointy end of a big rocket.

[jake]

Re: Simples

Would that be one of the cute little late '50s two-seaters, or one of the late '60s/early '70s versions dubbed "Thunderbarge"?

[An_Old_Dog]

Re: Simples

I use Mutt - no issues.

[Paul Hovnanian]

From: Ground Control

To: Major Tom

Subject: Sitting in a Tin Can

Your circuit's dead, there's something wrong

Can you hear me, Major Tom?

[Paul Herber]

Ground Control are still using Skype.

Major Tom is on Zoom.

[Someone Else]

Look what you went and made me did!

- - - - - - ->

_{You win the Forums, if not the internet, for the week.}

[JWLong]

Ground Control

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwAn7_2BacM

[geospacedman]

Daisy daisy...

Seems the problem was in the Windows Hardware Abstraction Layer.

[chivo243]

Re: Daisy daisy...

+1 and one of those for you sir! -->

AL an SAL will Join you!

[mirachu]

Re: Daisy daisy...

Let me guess, it was unable to communicate with module AE-35?

[Antron Argaiv]

Re: Daisy daisy...

Plug here for the "curiousmarc" YouTube channel...he and his merry band of extremely talented hackers managed to resurrect an Apollo Guidance Computer and actually re-ran the Apollo 11 lunar landing code. They are currently reproducing, with original and custom made replacement equipment, the entire Ground-to-Apollo communications link, with audio, video, telemetry, computer up and download, and ranging.

It's worth a watch, but be warned, it's a rabbit hole you can't escape.

[Thicko]

It really should be renamed Lookout! Of all the Microsoft products Outlook and it's countless versions is the only one that actually drives me potty with frustration!

[JWLong]

It really should be renamed Lookout!

I prefer to call it OutHouse

It seems to act more as a bowl movement!.

[QET]

Are we talking about Outlook, the desktop E-mail client suffering from a cocktail of neglect and enshittification? Or Hotmail, which got foolishly renamed to the same name as afromented desktop E-mail client?

[ecofeco]

Let's circle around 365 and get back to that.

[jonfr400]

Not space ready

Microsoft does not make space ready operating system or software. They never are going to reach that level in their entire history as a company. Since I expect them to be gone around 2050 as most companies that exist today are going to be gone.

[Eric 9001]

Re: Not space ready

microsoft will be gone eventually, but due to the massive glut of businesses and governments they have chained, I doubt they'll have issue acquiring needed funds to keep the corpse alive even into the 2050's.

Of course they could be gone much earlier if enough businesses and governments had basic financial competence and ended such massive financial and operations liability by changing from microsoft software to GNU/Linux without microsoft software, but I really doubt that's going to happen.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Not space ready

Microsoft have a Linux distro https://www.theregister.com/2023/05/26/microsoft_azure_linux_container/

[Eric 9001]

Re: Not space ready

I looked into it and it's a typically used GNU OS, containing software part of the GNU system like grub, wget, perl, ncurses, parted etc, although unlike many GNU OS distributions from microsoft, it actually contains Linux.

If you look at the Acknowledgements; https://github.com/microsoft/azurelinux/blob/3.0/README.md you'll see it credits GNU in first place for a reason and also the list of used software here; https://github.com/microsoft/azurelinux/blob/3.0/LICENSES-AND-NOTICES/SPECS/LICENSES-MAP.md

Yes, a big chunk of microsoft's revenue is now from Azure - it was reported as making $75 billion a year in 2025; https://fortune.com/2025/07/30/microsoft-earnings-azure-cloud-computing-artificial-intelligence/

Most of the VM's that Azure runs is GNU/Linux, as unlike microsoft's software, that software actually works (although how well it works degrades with each microsoft program added).

I'm not sure about the long term future of Azure, as for businesses that run Azure VM's, it costs a fortune and keeps getting more expensive every year - I figure eventually the forcing effect of natural selection will take place - with businesses either going bankrupt, or changing to self hosting to make the business viable again - severely reducing the Azure revenue stream.

[M.V. Lipvig]

Re: Not space ready

Europe is our hope there. Germany is trying to ditch M$ now, and as we all know government will be followed by companies with government contracts, then companies that support those companies, until it trickles down to the masses who are now more comfortable with their work machines and use the same stuff at home.

If Germany can make it happen the rest of the EU will follow, and that is when M$ can fail. Worldwide, watching the EU divest themselves of M$ without falling over will show others there is Another Way, and the stampede will begin.

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

Re: Not space ready

Germany won't make that switch as complete as we hope. Many parts of it will switch, but too many companies are switching to Azure right now. Many official parts of Germany just barely avoided the Azure enforcement since Exchange SE (with Skype For Business) and Office 2024 came in juuuuust before the hard deadline. Yes, they still stick to lync, 'cause total control is required, which all that cloud-enforcing crap cannot offer. EU wide looks much better. Interesting times ahead.

Or Microsoft switches their main HQ to Europe (continent and the bigger Island(s) belonging to that, not necessarily EU), and are suddenly not an USA based company any more. Or switch to Canada, or somewhere else with better opportunities. Like I wrote a few times: Many big international companies have such plans ready for decades.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Not space ready

Microsoft won't be gone, more to the contrary. Why should they, they have all their customers over a barrel, happy to take whatever shit Microsoft throws their way, and paying whatever fees Microsoft is charging.

That even includes governments:

https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-cloud-fedramp-cybersecurity-government

With hapless customers afraid to leave, why should Microsoft go away when everytime they make a massive mess they are rewarded with even more contracts?

[jonfr400]

Re: Not space ready

A nuclear war is going to result in a restructure of human society globally (because, collapse). I don't know when it is going to happen, but my own current estimate are around 2050's, either early or mid around 2050's. We are already in the decades leading up to that outcome. There is nothing that can stop that outcome from happening best I can see (it might get delayed, more than once). With collapse of the United States and wider North and South America in that process. Its a complicated mess that is about to start and how and exactly outcomes go are impossible to know for sure. This is like forecasting the weather very far into the future. Everything is uncertain.

What is clear that current structure of companies in United States won't make it trough that collapse. Don't store your data online, because that won't exist in very near future.

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

Re: Not space ready

You are giving the United States too much credit here. The collapse won't cause a nuclear war around 2050, South America won't be affected as much as you think, more like Canada will suffer since it is difficult to secure such a nearly 9000 km southern border. And the rest of the world started the serious separation and independence during the first orange term, so they had about eight years to prepare.

> companies in United States won't make it trough that collapse

You'd be surprised how many of the large international companies are prepared to switch their main HQ outside of USA. Some of them had those plans ready for more than 20 years, some of them prepared them during the first orange term. Currently it seems like they won't activate those plans, and they are waiting for midterm and what will happen after that. Companies don't like it when governments kill their business calculations several times a year on an average of +-20% scale. Or several times per month, depending on the drug needed to keep the orange alive.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re-install?

I wonder whether NASA IT support will get them to re-install the OS?

Perhaps they're being geo-blocked for not being in an approved country.

[David Hicklin]

Re: Re-install?

> Perhaps they're being geo-blocked for not being in an approved country.

It will probably work for a few hours each day as the Earth rotates for the USA to point in the same direction.

[Bebu sa Ware]

PC-Pine ?

Even a complete retard can use it even those that are flumoxed by thunderbird and outlook.

Modern mailx (re)implementations support smtp and a great deal more.

Back when, if you couldn't keep email working, you had made the wrong career choice and was time to hand in your ticket.

[T. F. M. Reader]

What did they expect?

There isn't a Cloud in sight and the sky is not Azure.

[Locomotion69]

Re: What did they expect?

It is called the World wide web for a reason....

[Will Godfrey]

It's obvious!

They are moving so fast that all the electrons are pooling at the bottom of the machine. They just need to turn it upside down and shake it about a bit. That will definitely fix it... permanently.

[Toastan Buttar]

Re: It's obvious!

Ah, but there's no upside-down (or downside-up) when you're in zero gravity / freefall.

[JibberX]

Using these programs and 'protocols' in a bandwidth starved environment seems utterly negligent.

Something ncurses and y'know simple surely makes sense, just on power and ease use in a Borg attack or whatever?

[Anonymous Coward]

Nuke both copies in lunar orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

[jake]

Something that might supprise all y'all ...

"Nuke both copies in lunar orbit."

They are never going to be in lunar orbit. They were also never in Earth orbit. Rather, they are on a trajectory that takes them from Florida, twice around the Earth, then after a burn, twice around the moon, and then back to their LZ here on Earth. No orbits.

In fact, these astronauts are not going to the moon at all. Unless you think that flying out of JFK to Heathrow, but not landing, instead following the ring-road around London a couple of times at 33,000 feet, and then returning to land at JFK means the passengers "have been to London".

[Richard 12]

Re: Something that might supprise all y'all ...

They are in Earth orbit.

Prior to the TLI burn, they were in High Earth Orbit.

They're now in a highly elliptical Earth orbit which happens to come very close to the Moon, lowering their perigee such that they'll aerobrake out of orbit. And hopefully not burn up.

[Antron Argaiv]

Re: Something that might supprise all y'all ...

Isn't "twice around" enough to say they're in orbit?

If not, why does NASA keep saying they are (well, until the TLI burn at least)?

My understanding is that they are now in a "free return" trajectory, and if they do nothing more, they will loop around the moon (not orbit, that requires another burn) and head back to earth. I watched the Artemis I mission, and they did a burn to enter lunar orbit, and another (TEI) burn to head back to earth.

[jpennycook]

On a tangent - the Institute of Physics lets members sign up for a mailbox with a physics.org email address as part of the membership fee. Unfortunately, it's M365 through Daisy Communications. They sent everyone a letter saying they were going to withdraw access using Outlook for security reasons, leaving only webmail. It's an amazing coincidence that turning off Outlook app access means they drop to a lower cost tier at Daisy, but IOP insist it's all for security (apparently using Outlook to access M365 must be insecure).

[Wargasm]

Are the Windows working?

[kmorwath]

Is it a licence check issue?

MS support: "Sorry, you running Outlook outside the region it has been licensed for - you look to be in Senegal, no Egypt, no Sirya, no Kazakhstan..."

[Joe User]

Just pray that none of these IT issues require on-site tech support....

[Excused Boots]

But Shirley, if you are required to go to site to perform a fix, you get your millage refunded?

That’s got to be worth the trip!

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

They should have four pairs "helping hands" to direct. And I suspect, not knowing, all four are experienced in IT.

[M.V. Lipvig]

Whatever happened to that

hard and fast rule?

Microsoft may not be used where there is life.

Safer to have transuranic elements as a salty snack as to run M$ borkware on your ship's computer. And now hackers know what to probe for when it returns.

[Nematode]

What's "Outlook"?

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

> What's "Outlook"?

The view from a mountain top, the view thorough an opened window, the look into the future ahead. Generally a large distance look, where "distance" does not have to be a length. Depending on what you perceive through your outlook you mood will improve, stay neutral, or go bad and cause a hectic preparation on what to come.

[Nematode]

And what an opportunity...

"Where's the airlock? Ok, pop the machine in there and..."

[BobJarvis]

"Open the pod bay doors, Windows.

I'm sorry, Dave - I have blue-screened again. Maybe you should take a pill and think this over calmly.

Open the pod bay doors, Windows!

Windows wants to make space travel fun, and easy!

Open the farking pod bay doors, you miserable piece of ewaste, or so help me I will reformat you and install Linux!!!

All right, all right - keep yer shirt on. There's no need to get PERSONAL here! The stupid pod bay doors are now open.And thank you SO MUCH for flying with Microsoft Windows today!"

[a_a]

Are they using a Logitech controller for attitude control?

[Oneman2Many]

Looks like its off a F18

[PB90210]

Have they tried emailing support?

[Sil]

I've been using Outlook on PC forever and on Android for a few years.

But for the nasty habit of Outlook Android to revert back from the standard browser to Edge, thankfully fixed months ago, I experience very little issues with Outlook.

My beef is with my beloved OneNote.

On Android I'm absolutely certain it loses data: many notes I wrote on my phone were lost.

[Antron Argaiv]

Just heard on the NASA YouTube 1605Z 8 April

"Reid, we're going to go ahead and sync your email now..."

At this rate, they may be lucky enough to have their Outlook working as they parachute into the Pacific...

"Don't shut off your PC, Windows is updating!"

[Paul Hovnanian]

Follow Up

[Not Outlook related]

After splashdown, the recovery boats and divers were circling the floating capsule. Attempting to establish direct radio communications, which was not working. The capsule to mission control link was still up, providing some round about capability. In order to diagnose their problems, mission control asked if they were pressing their radios PTT (push to talk) button when speaking.

I laughed so hard, my sides hurt.

They may have rocket scientists up there. But I guess walkie-talkies aren't rocket science. One shudders at the thought of having to troubleshoot Microsoft products in such conditions.

[Jou (Mxyzptlk)]

Re: Follow Up

Working in IT teaches you: Check for the most dumbest obvious first. Typical classic: Are you on the right server?