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I'm just impressed that the lifts, alarms, cranes, phones, etc all run on Windows somehow.

In a lot of cases you find tangential dependencies on Windows in ways you don't expect. For example a deployment pipeline entirely linux-based deploying to linux-based systems that relies on Active Directory for authentication.

> Active Directory for authentication.

In my experience that'd be 90% of the equipment.

"Oh! It has LDAP integration! We can 'Single Sign On'."

I don't know if "impressed" is the right word..

"Appalled", "bewildered" and "horrified" and also comes to mind..

I'm more confused because I have never, ever encountered a lift that wasn't just some buttons or joysticks on a controller attached to the lift. There is zero need of more computing power than a 8-bit microcontroller from the 1980s. I don't know where I would even buy such a lift with a windows PC.

No one sells 8 bit microcontrollers from the 1980s anymore. Just because you don't need the full power of modern computing hardware and software doesn't mean you are going to pay extra for custom, less capable options.

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