Never mind my previous posts about the voting machine problems at Downtown West. After trying to sort through all the confusing media reports about the exact nature of the problem, I finally watched the WATE video. A picture is worth a thousand words, as they say. Some of the mystery is solved, but new questions are raised.
Read more after the jump...
The "voting machine" in question is not a voting machine at all. It is the "Jury Booth Controller" (JBC) that controls the voting machines as we originally thought.
The first clue was that "the machine’s primary data card is apparently corrupted" as stated in early reports. That same report, however, talked about a "malfunctioning voting machine". The eSlate machines themselves do not have a data "card", but rather on-board non-volatile memory chips where backup votes are stored.
The next clue was the explanation that a "pin that acts as a hinge for the printer paper cover" had fallen into the machine and shorted out the motherboard. The voting machines used in Knox County do not have printers.
WATE confusingly reported that there was an "error with a voting machine" and that the "voting machine" was taken to a local company for repair. But watching the WATE online video, you see technicians working on a controller, not an actual voting machine. Why this was not made clear in the media reports, and why they continuously referred to it as "voting machine" is a mystery. Most likely it is just lazy reporting.
Regardless, it answers many of our previous questions. Namely, why weren't the votes simply counted from the controller's internal memory or the controller's flash memory card, which is where the "vote of record" is stored.
The reason they couldn't count the votes from the controller's internal memory is now obvious. How and why the controller's MBB flash memory card was corrupted is another question, but presumably this was related to the controller being "shorted out" and "smoking".
So here are the new questions.
What happens when a controller fails like this? This would seem like a pretty dramatic event that would have been reported. Local media reported that the machine was "smoking" so they simply "unplugged it." It wouldn't have been quite that simple. No voting can take place on the eSlate voting machines without a controller. A new controller would have had to be installed with a new, freshly initialized and serialized MBB flash memory card inserted.
Hart InterCivic operating manuals do not appear to have a procedure for this, so unless there it is covered in another manual something had to be improvised. How it would affect the eSlate voting machines previously attached to the failed controller or the votes contained in their internal memory is not clear. Maybe this is why they weren't able to simply go to the individual machines and count the votes there.
The Hart operating manuals describe a procedure for obtaining a "recount" from individual eSlate voting machines using the Hart SERVO software. This data is obtained from a backup downloaded from each machine as it is checked in to the warehouse after an election.
The Hart operating manuals describe a procedure for rebuilding a corrupted MBB flash memory card, which is the "vote of record" recorded on the JBC controller. In this procedure, the MBB flash memory card is rebuilt from the controller's internal memory. This was not possible in this case for obvious reasons until the controller's internal memory chips were transferred to another motherboard and installed in a new controller.
This seems to be a flaw in the eSlate system architecture and design. If two of the redundant vote data backups are on one machine, in the case of a complete system failure it is not possible to recover them. The fact that the machine and its two redundant vote data backups can be rendered unusable by a ten cent part falling into the motherboard would also seem to be a design flaw.
Even with such a system design there is a third copy of the data on the individual eSlate voting machines. The question then is, why wasn't the Hart SERVO software eSlate recount function used to retrieve the votes? This would seem much simpler and more reliable than flying in two technicians from the vendor and doing major surgery on the controller.
And finally, why the media can't just explain what is going on in a straightforward manner is also puzzling.
UPDATE: As I was posting this, Knox County Administrator of Elections Greg Mackay answers on another thread the question of why the dSlate counts were not used. They weren't backed up using the SERVO software:
Some of you have wondered why we had such trouble reading votes from the Downtown West JBC.Apparently a loose printer pin damaged some internal components. Fortunately the memory chips that serve as a back-up were not damaged and when they were moved to another board we were able to count them. But, you ask, surely we did not buy a system that holds all the votes in one box.
We did not. Due to the learning curve on the machines the technicians failed to back up the early votes cast on the eSlate machines. Had this been done, if a JBC failed, it would have been a simple matter to retrieve the votes in question by reading the backed up totals from the eSlates. This is the third back up you have heard about.
The important point is, even though one component was damaged, and one procedure was not followed, we were still able to get an accurate count. The Hart eSlate system and Hart Interactive Inc. stood up to the test and passed with flying colors.
Greg Mackay
AOE
OK, then. With the new information that the eSlate machines were not backed up, everything adds up now.
I would still like to know the procedure for replacing a failed controller. Do the connected eSlates also have to be replaced? And in the case of a "smoking" controller, why wouldn't the first thing you do be to obtain a backup of the votes from the eSlates connected at the time? Live and learn, I guess.
At any rate, the actual machine vote records do not appear to be available, and according to Hart's security analysis report this is one of the components used to cross-check the controller and flash memory card "votes of record" for inaccuracy or tampering.
In a case involving a corrupted flash memory card and a "smoking" motherboard and extraordinary intervention and handling of the controller internal memory chips by the vendor and by an employee of a third-party local company to retrieve the votes that decided a $50 million ballot issue, I'm guessing the Election Commission would have liked to have had the eSlate voting data for audit and verification purposes.
Topics:
|
|
Discussing:
- Nearly 40 families being evicted in Maryville, new ownership (3 replies)
- Cost of car ownership on the rise, becoming unsustainable for some drivers (5 replies)
- Boeing was once known for safety and engineering (6 replies)
- Beware bad tax advice on the Internet (3 replies)
- Opoid treament across the bridge in SoKno (4 replies)
- Is tap water safe to drink? CDC report highlights deadly waterborne infections (4 replies)
- TN Republicans pushing to allow open carry of assault rifles despite pushback (2 replies)
- As some countries spurn cars, the U.S. continues to embrace highways (1 reply)
- Private equity ownership of hospitals made care riskier for patients, a new study finds (20 replies)
- USPS Knoxville facility (1 reply)
- Springtime is here and Dogwoods are blossoming (2 replies)
- TDOT lists dozens of East Tennessee bridges in ‘poor’ condition (1 reply)
TN Progressive
- EPA Blisters TVA Plans For Replacing Kingston Coal Plant With Gas (RoaneViews)
- Friday Toons (RoaneViews)
- Toon (RoaneViews)
- Glad to see a substantial candidate running against Chuck fLIEschman (RoaneViews)
- It's voting time again. Let's get out the vote. (BlountViews)
- Winter at the Big Rocks (Whitescreek Journal)
- Maryville Daily Times Home Delivery changing again (BlountViews)
- Amazon facility in Rockford finally opens (BlountViews)
- Share your ideas for the Blount County Comprehensive Plan 2023 (BlountViews)
- Secrets from My Radio Days (Joe Powell)
- Fall 2022 (Whitescreek Journal)
- Mmmm, A Fresh Hot Cup of Joe (Joe Powell)
TN Politics
- Senate education chair: Voucher agreement needed by week’s end for passage (TN Lookout)
- John Cole’s Tennessee: Reading, writing, ‘rithmetic and reloading (TN Lookout)
- Budget clears House, Senate panels, but voucher bill on hold (TN Lookout)
- Republican lawmakers make vocal push against Chattanooga VW plant union effort (TN Lookout)
- Duck River among the ‘most endangered’ in the nation (TN Lookout)
- Editor’s notebook: Arming as many Tennesseans as possible while mistreating mothers. (TN Lookout)
Knox TN Today
- Rickea Jackson lands in Los Angeles (Knox TN Today)
- Library studies information integrity (Knox TN Today)
- Linda Sullivan stretches our imagination (Knox TN Today)
- TCAP testing in progress: Take care (Knox TN Today)
- Trumpore and Barrier receive full ROTC scholarships (Knox TN Today)
- Dailey three score big at Chalk Walk (Knox TN Today)
- HVA has nine future teachers (Knox TN Today)
- Maggie chooses Ozark over Knoxville (Knox TN Today)
- SDHS Musical Theatre to present Mamma Mia (Knox TN Today)
- A ‘Worthy’ woman from Corryton (Knox TN Today)
- Kronick’s Chronicles: Group homes evolved from fear to success (Knox TN Today)
- Dwarf crested irises form carpet of blue (Knox TN Today)
Local TV News
- Some students at a Knoxville elementary school to retake part of TCAP exam (WATE)
- Knoxville Police: Man shot by officer at Fountain City gas station dies (WATE)
- Inside the high-stakes world of Knox County E911 dispatchers (WATE)
- 'An inspiration' Knoxville woman kicks off 100th birthday with a workout (WATE)
- Splash pads opening around Knox County for 2024 season (WATE)
- Mixed-income housing at McClung Warehouse sites could help ease Knoxville housing crunch (WATE)
- Knoxville man must serve 26 years in prison for child sex crimes (WBIR)
- Downtown Knoxville festival featuring cuisine and performances returns on April 20 (WBIR)
- 'I want to go to college': Renounce Denounce graduates first class from its gang intervention program (WBIR)
- Service & Sacrifice: H-bomb Eyewitness (WBIR)
- Lenoir City man uses personal tragedy to help others (WBIR)
- Looking back: Blount County man one of several East Tennesseans on death row (WBIR)
News Sentinel
State News
- Vols linebacker Jeremiah Telander continues rapid rise in program - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Wes Moore steps down as Chattanooga Christian basketball coach - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Chattanooga's nine best high school baseball fields ranked - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Kirby Wahl Obituary - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
Wire Reports
- Senate dismisses impeachment charges against Mayorkas - The Washington Post (US News)
- Tornado Watches issued as dangerous storms rumble through Ohio Valley, southern Great Lakes - Fox Weather (US News)
- Tesla Seeks to Revive Musk's $47 Billion Pay Deal After Judge Says No - The New York Times (Business)
- Google workers arrested after nine-hour protest in cloud chief's office - CNBC (Business)
- United said it lost $200 million from the temporary grounding of the Boeing 737 Max 9 - Fox Business (Business)
- Alaska Airlines grounded after FAA advisory - MyNorthwest (Business)
- Biden vows to block US Steel acquisition by Japan’s Nippon Steel - The Associated Press (US News)
- If Trump testifies at NY criminal trial, prosecutors want to use his past legal run-ins to discredit him to jury - CNN (US News)
- Tesla Layoffs: Buffalo, NY Factory Loses 14% Workforce - Bloomberg (Business)
- Columbia University president grilled on campus antisemitism at congressional hearing - NBC News (US News)
- Video: Escaped circus elephant stops traffic in Montana - The Associated Press (US News)
- US man, 81, charged with murdering Uber driver after both targeted in scam - BBC.com (US News)
- 4 charged with murder and kidnapping of Kansas women in Oklahoma - KSN-TV (US News)
- U.S. stocks open higher as Treasury yields retreat - MarketWatch (Business)
- ‘Victories would be nothing less than an earthquake’: can UAW win in the south? - The Guardian US (Business)
Local Media
Lost Medicaid Funding
Search and Archives
TN Progressive
Nearby:
- Blount Dems
- Herston TN Family Law
- Inside of Knoxville
- Instapundit
- Jack Lail
- Jim Stovall
- Knox Dems
- MoxCarm Blue Streak
- Outdoor Knoxville
- Pittman Properties
- Reality Me
- Stop Alcoa Parkway
Beyond:
- Nashville Scene
- Nashville Post
- Smart City Memphis
- TN Dems
- TN Journal
- TN Lookout
- Bob Stepno
- Facing South
So, "loose printer pin"
So, "loose printer pin" damaged the JBC, which I guess damaged the MBB card (PCMCIA flash card). Thus the primary vote count memory card was not available?
The eSlate machines did not have the backup as designed.
So, the third backup, the JBC on-board memory chips were required to get the correct vote? But, again because of the "loose printer pin", the on-board memory chips (the third backup) had to be removed from the damaged JBC and placed in a new/different JBC to retrieve the votes?
Goodness, sounds like you need a fourth backup or more.
(New thread, re-post comment. )
And finally, why the
And finally, why the media can't just explain what is going on in a straightforward manner is also puzzling.
This reminds me of the WATE "Steve Hall dropping out of the race" gaffe. That was caused by a news anchor who "was not from here".
So what is the cause of the confusion on the WATE story about the Downtown West eSlate reporting malfunction?
Sounds like a good time for a David Letterman Top 10 Countdown.
10. "You take them there memory chips and you rebuild them".
9. How do I know, University of Arkansas didn't have computer classes.
8. Who will know the difference?
7. What's a memory chip anyway?
6.