The matter of a ‘simple computer upgrade’ I first came to learn of on March 19 has illustrated two things. One is lack of clarity in writing. The other is that two people responding to reporters' questions did not seem to be talking about the same thing.

If we aspire to be a writer and we take a formal course in the art of writing at a decent school, we would be exhorted to exhibit clarity, brevity, and impact in our pieces. We would be told to keep it short and sweet. This one is known as the KISS rule.

In the report (not Malaysiakini ’s) I first read, the phrase used was ‘simple computer upgrade’. I don’t know what that means to you, but to me that has to do with hardware. For example, I would be upgrading my computer if I bought and installed a graphics card that can process complex 3D renderings at blinding speeds.

The report told us that the, er, simple computer upgrade costing US$10 per plane would have allowed MAS to track MH370. That is, tracked it till it came to, to imitate the phrase often used on board a plane, a complete stop. I wouldn’t want to say ‘crashed’, because I don’t know if it has.

Why could the upgrade do that? - because it not only was able to transmit information on engine performance, fuel consumption, speed, altitude, and direction, but it would also have continued to transmit all the data (by satellite) even after the plane’s transponder and ACARS (Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System) signals went dead.

Note: In another report later, we are told that it isn’t US$10 per plane but per flight!

And why hasn’t MAS purchased the ‘upgrade’? Oh, according to the same report first mentioned, an unnamed industry source said, “Every pound on an aircraft is fuel consumed. As in all matters, it always comes down to cost.”

I don’t know about you again, but the ‘pound’ in the source's response suggests hardware. I mean, software weigh nothing. Even if you consider the media - usually a CD or perhaps a DVD - on which a piece of software exists, the weight would amount to mere ounces (or grammes). Surely the additional cost (of jet fuel) involved to transport a few ounces/grammes even around the globe wouldn't be prohibitive, would it?

Three days later, Malaysiakini reported that MAS’ chief executive officer Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said that the upgrade involved nothing more than an increase in bandwidth - that is, the extra amount of data that can be transmitted per second.

So, it is neither hardware nor software but bandwidth. Or is it?

Whatever the ‘upgrade’ really is, we, the lay people, are left wondering whether the saving of US$10 (RM33) might have cost 239 lives.