[LEAPSECS] leap smear

[Rob Seaman]

> The fundamental problem is that a vast majority of the worlds

> software is written as if leap seconds simply do not exist.


This may or may not be a boundary condition.  The fundamental system engineering problem is that there are two different types of time, two kinds of clock.

No coherent systems engineering process has been used to attempt to sort out the possible solution space for this problem.


> The fact that they do, are horribly expensive to test, and tend not

> to get tested because *recently* they have not happened a lot, is

> merely icing on the cake.


Rare classes of event are often tested by injecting instances artificially.  You are merely asserting all of these second-order issues in precisely the same way that you are asserting the first-order issues.

It is patently absurd to suggest that something is too dangerous to address in an appropriate engineering sense to mitigate the risks.


> Their solution for leapseconds, for which the system as a whole has

> not been tested, is that they announce to all planes in their

> air-space that they are "on their own, to remain on course until

> further notice" and then they wait for the light-show to calm down.


Asserting that some actor has done some inappropriate thing is immaterial to how appropriate things should be done.


> I'm sure it's known, and I think the reason is either somebody

> uninformed panicing, on somebody well-informed panicking.


Asserting that whoever it was was panicky doesn't seem like a strong argument for your position (whatever it was).

Again and again and again - you are simply assuming that there are no negative affects from redefining UTC.  The issue is not leap seconds, which are merely a means to an end, the issue is redefining Coordinated Universal Time to no longer be a kind of Universal Time.  It is certain that this will break large quantities of astronomical software.  Nobody has looked to see what it will break in other communities.

Somebody should actually look.

Consensus should be reached before voting on the issue.

Rob