Java crashes the departure board at Tyne and Wear Metro

Java has elbowed its way onto a Tyne and Wear Metro information display, giving passengers an error message alongside their train times.

Eagle-eyed Register reader abend0c4 spotted the sign, whose dialog design suggests a rather elderly Windows installation. Could it be Windows 7 in Classic guise, or perhaps Windows Server 2008 R2? Both wheezed their last in 2023, when the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program ended. Or perhaps POSReady 7? That kept going (again via ESU) until October 8, 2024.

Not that the end of ESU means the code will suddenly stop working. Just that Microsoft has called a halt to updates.

The Tyne and Wear Metro is no stranger to keeping old technology running past its expiration date. Opened in August 1980, the transit network has been replacing its aging rolling stock with new units, but the signage has endured. …