4 ms·

There are some non-trivial apps used by real users that are 32-bit only, in particular the pre-subscription versions of Adobe Creative Suite.

Someone 6y ago
And those aren’t the worst examples, as alternatives exist (subscription only and/or more expensive, possibly, but they do exist) Especially in companies, there may be that ‘essential’ app somebody wrote in two decades ago that nobody has the source code to or, if they have, uses a language dialect no modern compiler supports, requires third party libraries of companies long out of business, etc. Also, hardware support may be an issue. Expensive hardware can have long lifetimes, and hardware companies tend to be bad at upgrading drivers order hardware they don’t sell anymore.
- valuearb 6y ago
  Those companies should pay the developers of those “essential” apps for the update. I’m tired of companies cheeping out and blaming everyone else when they don’t want to pay devs.
jfk13 6y ago
And real users can keep running that old software on real similarly-old computers. I don't think the number of still-functional old Macs is so small that they're going to be impossible to find any time soon. I can understand being unhappy that Adobe doesn't offer an upgrade path from an obsolete version of CS to similar licensing terms for a modern version that runs on modern computers. But I think that complaint should be directed at Adobe, not Apple.
intpx 6y ago
So end-of-life releases that have been replaced with newer builds? Any application that doesn't survive the progression of technology doesn't deserve to-- software requires maintenance. We expect hardware to get bigger/faster/stronger but are unwilling to hold software to the same standard? I am wracking my brain but cannot think of a single application that I ran on previous epochs of hardware (whether it be 32bit, PowerPC, Itanium, or anything else) that I am now missing out on.FOSS has really mitigated this a ton too because if there was a good idea from a defunct codebase, inevitably a project would spring up to fill that void. Professionally, legacy software is the bane of my existence because I am expected to move heaven and earth to make crappy, long outdated and inherently insecure proprietary enterprise apps work on modern networks with modern operating systems and modern security requirements. Let it all burn.
- jtbayly 6y ago
  Software that runs perfectly fine, performs just what I need, and that I already paid for, that has no security implications... and you want me to now start paying monthly for the privilege of using the same software. No thanks. I know software requires maintenance. When it’s cheaper to buy another computer that runs the old software just fine than paying for “updates” and “improvements” and “bug fixes” that do nothing for me, I think people are going to stop paying for such “updates”.
izacus 6y ago
And a massive chunk of Steam library which will never be updated.

Someone 6y ago

And those aren’t the worst examples, as alternatives exist (subscription only and/or more expensive, possibly, but they do exist) Especially in companies, there may be that ‘essential’ app somebody wrote in two decades ago that nobody has the source code to or, if they have, uses a language dialect no modern compiler supports, requires third party libraries of companies long out of business, etc. Also, hardware support may be an issue. Expensive hardware can have long lifetimes, and hardware companies tend to be bad at upgrading drivers order hardware they don’t sell anymore.

valuearb 6y ago
Those companies should pay the developers of those “essential” apps for the update. I’m tired of companies cheeping out and blaming everyone else when they don’t want to pay devs.

jfk13 6y ago

And real users can keep running that old software on real similarly-old computers. I don't think the number of still-functional old Macs is so small that they're going to be impossible to find any time soon. I can understand being unhappy that Adobe doesn't offer an upgrade path from an obsolete version of CS to similar licensing terms for a modern version that runs on modern computers. But I think that complaint should be directed at Adobe, not Apple.

intpx 6y ago

So end-of-life releases that have been replaced with newer builds? Any application that doesn't survive the progression of technology doesn't deserve to-- software requires maintenance. We expect hardware to get bigger/faster/stronger but are unwilling to hold software to the same standard? I am wracking my brain but cannot think of a single application that I ran on previous epochs of hardware (whether it be 32bit, PowerPC, Itanium, or anything else) that I am now missing out on.FOSS has really mitigated this a ton too because if there was a good idea from a defunct codebase, inevitably a project would spring up to fill that void. Professionally, legacy software is the bane of my existence because I am expected to move heaven and earth to make crappy, long outdated and inherently insecure proprietary enterprise apps work on modern networks with modern operating systems and modern security requirements. Let it all burn.

jtbayly 6y ago
Software that runs perfectly fine, performs just what I need, and that I already paid for, that has no security implications... and you want me to now start paying monthly for the privilege of using the same software. No thanks. I know software requires maintenance. When it’s cheaper to buy another computer that runs the old software just fine than paying for “updates” and “improvements” and “bug fixes” that do nothing for me, I think people are going to stop paying for such “updates”.

izacus 6y ago

And a massive chunk of Steam library which will never be updated.