3 ms·

Shouldn't all software have a clearly labelled expiration date like dairy products do?

• cool-RR 16y ago
  That's a more general, interesting question. Having an expiration date to software is kind of annoying, and I think that it shouldn't be done in general. But, when it comes to browsers, I think this would be so helpful to the progress of the web that it would be worth the annoyance.
  • albertzeyer 16y ago
    For software which could be interesting also far in the future (I only can think of games or other somewhat artistic software), I would make it in a way that the expiration date check is only done if the software is able to find an update.
• sliverstorm 16y ago
  Last year I used a computer that actually had a 486 cpu, whose only method of data transfer was floppy, and would have choked on anything other than the DOS it was loaded with. It had a power ROCKER, not a power button. It was probably about 20 years old. It did it's job admirably- load EEPROM chips with it's paired, equally archaic EEPROM burner. There is really no reason to replace it, besides saving you the annoyance of using floppies. So, in a word what I am saying is computers that are tools need not have an expiration date. Their software does not need to be updated, because there is nothing wrong with it. Do you upgrade your 1970's corded drill just because it's old? No. It may not be pretty, but it does the job.
  • j_baker 16y ago
    How many security vulnerabilities does your power drill have? Is all the wood you get backwards-compatible with it?
  • phn 16y ago
    I could not agree more, if I download a software, I am the one who decides when and for what purpose I use it. I agree that people should be strongly recommended to update, or (as in Google Chrome) update automatically if possible, but refusing to boot is just plain wrong.