Thomas Lee Elifritz wrote:
Ed Kyle wrote:

The reported facts about DART are consistent with a software
issue of some kind. Software fails when it has not been
adequately tested.

No, software usually continues to execute, or executes to completion,
in which case the end state may or may not result in a lock up,
or an infinite loop.

Usually it's the software engineers that fail.

Program managers who fail to test to find faults in
complex software are the ones who should be blamed.
No software engineer can design perfect algorithims that
work perfectly in every circumstance, especially when
the circumstance is rangefinding and/or pattern recognition
in low earth orbit using detectors and guidance systems
that may have originally been designed for other purposes
and were brought together in a hurry on a limited budget
and tight schedule.

- Ed Kyle