That would hardly be relevant when lamenting its lack of support today.
However if you choose to continue using a software product after the end of the manufacturer-specified ‘end-of-life’, all you are guaranteed is the right to complain in public that you don’t like how it’s progressing. There are no guarantees that a technical solution will exist for the thing you want to do on out of date kit.
It is a shame, but this turnover is the only reason these companies existed long enough to provide whatever version it is you think they should support forever. Their continued existence is based on the notion they will sell you a new version of the thing you had before,
Yes, that’s what I was saying. And I’m not looking for “support”. I’m resigned to being self-supporting and I’m fine with that. In this specific context, what I’m lamenting is the demand that browsers must have esoteric capabilities in order to support new features in Discourse that probably no one asked for and no one needs. And I’m lamenting the fact that failure to meet these criteria will result, not in lesser functionality, but with the inability to access the site at all (except, AIUI, in a minimalist read-only mode with the inability to log in or post – which is the equivalent of being banned).
I’m lamenting the fact that this “improvement” in Discourse is going to cost me real money and, above all, enormous amounts of time to migrate to a new environment – from a familiar environment that I love to a new one that, by many accounts, many people hate – and will require me to trash a very reliable, super-quiet computer that I really like – a computer/OS/browser combo which, I might add, works for everything on the internet that I’ve ever used it for.
Discourse will be the first exception and the sole reason that this computer is no longer viable. Since I visit the SDMB a lot and post here a lot, this is a major blow. And it’s not as if it’s in the service of some vital new functionality. It’s in the service of some bullshit functionality that possibly no one will ever use but will make the developers feel like they’re doing cool stuff – or to put it less dramatically, functionality that seems to be very far from essential.
Orion seems to work okay - will have test a bit more and can’t get my bookmark bar to show up yet
Orion is for iOS and MacOS, just for the benefit of others. I’m dealing with Windows 7.
I don’t know anything about the new “features” that Discourse is implementing, but unless there’s some point to them that I don’t see, I fully support this rant.
It’s not my main computer, but I do have a Windows 7 laptop that I use occasionally for, among other things, reading the SDMB, and it appears I will no longer be able to do so. I am resigned to certain things no longer being available on that machine, but it still bothers me that this change doesn’t seem to have adequate justification.
Interface on Orion is still buggy …tho I can get at bookmarks via the sidepanel. Eliminates ads on youtube natively by the looks of it.. Cannot see how to edit bookmark names. There does not seem to be a book mark manager or editor.
There are two different shades of meaning for ‘support’ in this context:
- Support as in expert assistance from the manufacturer of the product - ie 'does Microsoft support this version? ’
- Support as in the capacity to do the things you want to do on the equipment you have - ie ‘does this device support this function?’
If you’re using Windows 7, you’re already outside of number 1 and you’re going to find yourself more and more frequently running into number 2.
Very often when we have conversations about using operating systems past their EOL, the folks who want to stay where they are argue ‘it’s OK, I accept the risks and consequences’. These are the consequences.
You can’t choose to stand still in a world that is marching onward. Well, you can, but you get left behind.
I agree it sucks, but the world can’t stand still.
Clearly, Discourse devs also consider compatibility with ancient computers to be “very far from essential”.
I remember the early days of the web. Yahoo was a news site, a search engine and an e-mail provider. There were even Yahoo ads on tv. Your free e-mail account came with a bunch of storage space. You could keep those files private or set it so that any other Yahoo user could see and download them. You could upload an image for other users to see or pick from assorted avatar designs an accessories. My Yahoo avatar was a caucasian guy with dark hair and a beard, wearing a white lab coat and x-ray specs standing a cave filled with bats. You could use your Yahoo ID and password for Yahoo instant messenger. You could use your Yahoo e-mail address and password on Flickr. At some point, they rolled out chat rooms.
It was shortly after the chat rooms that Yahoo peaked. Then, things began to be taken away. As far as I know, these days they just offer a new page nobody ever reads and e-mail. They keep messing with how the e-mail site is set up. I haven’t really investigated Gmail. I assume it is better in every way. But I dislike change. Plus, I would have to update the e-mail address on the SDMB and everything else I have a membership on.
Yahoo is still the 10th most visited website in the world, just below Reddit but above Amazon & Tiktok.
I’m pretty sure that includes everyone who goes to the yahoo website to read their own email as visitors to the website, though.
I’d rather party like it’s 1699 rather than spend $1500 and probably at least three months of software incompatibility hassles with a new computer. Not everyone’s use cases are the same. I do have a Win11 computer, but it’s a laptop, not a desktop, and is intended for different purposes.
Are you looking to do some hardcore gaming or something? I bought a gaming desktop with a very powerful graphucs card, prebuilt, for $1100 a few months ago. I got help picking it on this board. $1500 would get you a very powerful gaming PC that can handle the latest releases on Ultra graphics settings.
I assume that’s not what you’re looking for, so $150-200 would be more than sufficient.
Link to the thread in question:
I can certainly understand not wanting to upgrade, but keep in mind the issues are only going to get worse over time. More and more websites will stop supporting older browsers and operating systems. Making an effort to keep your old computer able to connect to the internet may end up being a hobby in and of itself. If you make workarounds to keep connecting to the SDMB, realize that you’re not done with workarounds. You’ll have to keep looking for solutions to new issues that pop up here and on other websites. Nothing wrong with that. That can be fun and give you a sense of accomplishment. But if you think of it as a hassle, you should probably consider making the jump to a newer system so you only have to feel the pain once.
I don’t do gaming. I just want a high quality, reliable desktop. This isn’t the place to get into debates about costs, but a few years ago my son – who absolutely is an avid gamer – built a PC, and the graphics card alone cost way more than the $1500 I’m talking about. It was some model of GeForce RTX – and I note that even today a GeForce RTX 5090 32GB GDDR7 is about CAD $2,900 in Canada.
But more to the point of this thread, the time cost and hassle of upgrading to a completely new computer and completely new and different and unnecessary OS is an even greater drain on my resources.than the dollar cost.
The great thing about Supermium, if it works out – I’m just starting to play with it – is it satisfies the arbitrary whims of the Discourse developers while allowing me to maintain my current stable platforms.
Yeah, you can spend a bunch of money on top of the line graphics cards. Like I said, you don’t need those even if you want to play brand new games on Ultra. My $1100 computer handles High/Ultra on brand new games just fine.
I guarantee you that buying a $200 computer, plugging it in, and following the Windows setup prompt would have been easier than the hoops you’re trying to jump through, but suit yourself.
For a couple more months, yeah. Well, enjoy Windows 7!
I have to agree. The worst part of switching to this laptop and the current version of Windows was switching off all the ‘helpful features’. I do not want to back anything up on the cloud- not ever. I do not want automatic corrections of my spelling and grammar when I type. I do not want every program I use constantly reporting information to Microsoft. I also had to change file associations from the programs and apps provided with Windows to free stuff I downloaded that works much better.
I have to disagree. I have a lot of stuff set up on my primary computer. Every time i get a new computer, there’s a “moving in” cost, which is substantial. (Although oddly, it’s not as bad as buying a new phone, which i need to do a lot more often.)
On the other hand, buying a cheap new computer for “interfacing with the outside world” and keeping your stable win7 machine offline (with the added advantage of fewer security risks to the old computer) might be a good option. I have a small travel laptop, and i just don’t worry a lot about what’s on it, or how it’s set up. It links to my Dropbox account, so i can have access to stuff I’ll actually need when i travel, and it runs a couple of browsers, and has some minimal email capability. Oh, and i can download YouTube and Netflix videos on it, to watch on the plane. And if i need to replace it, reproducing that will be easy.
That’s not the answer for everyone, of course. But it might be ideal for @wolfpup .
Really? The last three of four times I’ve gotten a new phone (which is probably 10 years) all I’ve had to do is plug them together with a 2 small ended USB cord and run an app that the phone comes preloaded with. And then my new phone is identical to my old phone.