Ghost in the J-Machine

[L S]

World-renowned for its hardware, Japan has a software problem. And the bugs are starting to bite.

For 2006, the Tokyo stock exchange has decided to supplement its computer systems with an exotic new backup technology: people. In December an employee at the Japanese investment firm Mizuho entered a mistaken sell order into the TSE's computerized trading system, which didn't allow the trade to be canceled once the mistake was noticed. The result: a transaction that ended up costing the company about $346 million.

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[t]japan[/t] [t]tse[/t] [t]stock[/t] [t]software[/t] [t]tech[/t] [t]bugs[/t] [t]trading[/t]

[Mulboyne]

I liked this software-glitch-that-wasn't:

Mainichi: Skate championship scoring error was caused by lack of staff
A scoring error at the Japan figure staking championships on Dec. 24 that resulted in a reversal of the top two places in the men's division occurred because the Japan Skating Federation lacked the appropriate staff, it has been learned. Earlier, the federation said the error that resulted in Nobunari Oda being dropped to second place after he had already received a medal was caused by a computer programming error.

...On Dec. 24, Japan Skating Federation official Nagahisa Ono explained the error by saying, "In the International Skating Union (ISU) system, points are automatically deducted for violation of regulations, but the system that the union ordered from a Japanese maker didn't automatically deduct points." However, when a Japan Skating Federation official contacted the ISU on Dec. 25, it was found that the program the ISU used was basically the same as the one used in Japan. The ISU said that the necessary staff members were usually put in place to make deductions that couldn't be carried out by computer. The Japan Skating Federation quickly placed a staff member on the judging panel the following day.