Backward-compatibility 5: Conclusion

[sorcerer_see]

I have been reading and thinking a LOT today on the matter of backward compatibility. Backward-compatibility is important to me because
- computing is costing immense amounts of investment in the form of human time and energy, and in the form of dwindling natural resources
- the way we have been conducting it up to now has caused endless loss of such resources and massive amounts of electrical waste and consequential pollution.

Our mistake is that we constantly dismiss and renew tech: hard- and software, even when this is not necessary.

What is going wrong?

Backward-compatibility is a challenge for computing, because it is a technology that is constantly being experimented with, improved, changed, by millions of professionals, allover the world.

To accomplish a uniformity and conformity that can enable compatibility across machines, operating systems, and more difficult: across versions, from the past to the future, it is necessary to have a unified organization and strict standards followed by all.

Such organization can be offered by groups: companies, government institutions, or non-governmental groups.
It is understandable that this is easier to accomplish if people in such a group are on a pay-roll, like in the case of Windows, MacOS, RHEL, Fedora, Ubuntu. Debian, OpenSUSE, etc, than if volunteers are loosely working together on a project, after their day-job, like is the case with most Linux distro's.

And in case of Linux the challenge is even greater: Linux is an organic system, not organized by one group but by a myriad of groups who may all have Unix-like operating systems running, but all these deviate from one-another, improve on different aspects, and evolve in different directions.

Windows as an ecosystem is managed by 1 group, Linux as an ecosystem is managed by countless fully independent groups.

So it is absolutely not a surprise that linux' internal compatibility can not compete with that of Windows. In fact it is a miracle actually how compatible linux systems effectively are, given the massive challenge, at least when it comes to current versions of applications.

POSIX,was/is a great initiative to address the issue of compatibility within the IT world, but people did/do not appreciate these efforts and do not take the opportunity, while it is clearly better for everyone.

Microsoft always acted as chevalier seul, dismissive and disrespectful towards the initiative, and only pretended to take steps towards following at least some of these standards. In practice Windows has not at all been compliant and did and does not care to be. It goes against their commercial interests. There are  also very few Unix-like systems who are certified POSIX. Most Linux OSes are close to being complaint but not fully. People there do not care: out of ignorance or out of individualism?

If you ask me, the IT world is a disaster, and the reason is capitalism

The broader IT world shines at
- disorganization
- aggressive competition
- promoting wasteful consumerism
- carelessness
- focusing on profits only

In fact, this is not typical about the IT world, it is simply typical about capitalism. Capitalism is unable to stop the destruction of our world, because it pushes individuals to only focus at what is in front of their noses, and ignore the broader picture: the question of what is best for the whole. Governments in capitalist societies are mainly serving the corporate world by continuing to enable this consumerism, and continuing to ignore what is best for the whole: for human beings of all nations and our dear planet earth. It is a great unforgivable tragedy.

Tech giants like Microsoft, Apple, Google, Meta, Amazon, etc.
- take away the sovereignty of the user by locking down their software
- strife for monopoly through aggressive marketing, causing competing systems to go obsolete, even of their systems work
- constantly push for advancement in the hard- and software field, pushing users to throw away perfectly working hardware to replace it with the newest gadgets
- participate in murderous violence by enabling the military
etc.

These activities cause an massive waste of resources, an endless stream of pollution, human and animal suffering.

Understanding these facts about the IT world makes me convinced that we definitely need a socialist approach. But a socialism that respects individual rights to the maximum. A libertarian socialism. Such a socialism can only function if individuals are mature and able to understand that the interests of other people are fundamentally aligned with our own interests, and that concepts like our nation, our only true religion, our race, our cast, patriotism and other nonsense, are dangerous fantasies that need to be cast away, if we want to stop the never ending madness.

If we do not do this, we will destroy our world, I have no doubts about it, it will be unavoidable.

This is why I want to be an ethical programmer by any means and not simply a money chaser.