Geek Weekly: Technology Decisions' quirky tech stories for 17 November 2015

Technology Decisions’ weekly wrap of IT fails, latest tech, new must-have gadgets, ‘computer says no’ moments and more.

Win 3.1 glitch grounds flights. Yes, you read that right — a Windows 3.1-based system that issues weather information to pilots at Paris’s Orly airport went down last week, forcing authorities to ground flights. The system, called DÉCOR, is so old that there are only three people in the whole of the city who have the expertise to work on it. Wonders never cease. (And just for the record, your editor still thinks Win 3.1 was a fabulous operating system. For that matter, so was DOS 6.2.2.)

IBM’s mainframe man dies. Gene Amdahl, the man behind IBM’s famous System/360 machines, has died at age 92. After IBM, Amdahl went on to found his own computer company, which ended up capturing 24% of the mainframe market.

China still on top. Forget The Block or Bindi Irwin’s dancing exploits in the US… here’s a real contest for you — the TOP500 supercomputer rankings. And for the sixth year in a row, China’s Tianhe-2, a supercomputer developed by the National University of Defense Technology, leads the pack. The rankings also show that China has tripled the number of systems in the top 500, while US representation has fallen to its lowest level since 1993. The top-ranked Aussie supercomputer, a Supermicro/SGI C01N called Tulip Trading, belongs to Sydney-based company Cloudcroft.

IT education going backwards. Australian school kids’ IT skills have gone backwards over the last four years, according to a new report which shows that in each year level, there has been a reduction in the percentage of students meeting the NAP – ICT literacy proficient standards. “The decline in performance is of concern, and there is a need for a renewed focus on the teaching of digital technologies in schools,” said Robert Randall, CEO of the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. As an example of the sort of things the kids were asked to do, Year 6 students had to search a website to find appropriate material, format a document, crop an image and create a short slideshow, while students in Year 10 were asked to design an online survey, use software to add two new levels to an online game and create a short animated video.

Worms with your coffee? Okay, we know that the world will eventually have trouble producing enough protein for all of us to eat. And yes, we know that insects will probably be the way to go. But are you ready for this? The insectivorous equivalent of a coffee machine? Check out Livin Farms ‘desktop hive for edible insects’. But only if you have a strong stomach.