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The Seduction of the New

posted by martyb on Tuesday October 27 2015, @11:57PM   Printer-friendly
from the if-some-is-good-then-too-much-is-not-enough? dept.

frojack writes:

Bruce Byfield's Blog on Linux Magazine explores the upgrade treadmill.

Byfield relates an old comic by Christiann MacAuley that depicts how Linux, Windows, and Mac users relates to a pop-up announcement saying: "An Update is Available for Your Computer".

The Linux user is enthusiastic, the Windows user groans, and the Mac user is glad it will only cost him $99.

One reason for switching to Linux used to be to get off the forced upgrades path common to proprietary software. Yet Linux users seem to have kept the urge to upgrade, even when the necessity was removed. Even when security fixes are back ported, to Long Term Support releases, we just can't seem to resist an upgrade.

Byfield explores the issue of upgrades, and why we Linux users feel compelled to perform major upgrades. Not only the minor patches to fix bugs that happen ever week. We routinely seem to rush in and put our entire systems at risk by installing complete system upgrades to new kernels, whole new desktops, sometimes new file systems, and even the dread systemd.

It's an interesting read, and set me wondering why so many Linux users chase upgrades for little or no new features.

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  • (Score: -1, Troll) by jasassin on Wednesday October 28 2015, @12:17AM

    by jasassin (3566) <jasassin@gmail.com> on Wednesday October 28 2015, @12:17AM (#255353) Homepage Journal

    If you look at phoronix.com even today, it's the same problems as when Linux came out. Intel releasing new CPUs that won't even work with the newest kernel, a new kernel busting the AMD drivers. Regressions all over the place. A quick skim of these articles explains why I'm running Windows.

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  • (Score: 2, Touché) by Techwolf on Wednesday October 28 2015, @12:36AM

    by Techwolf (87) on Wednesday October 28 2015, @12:36AM (#255359)

    +1 Troll :-)