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Posts: 1,751 | Thanked: 844 times | Joined on Feb 2010 @ Sweden
#118
Originally Posted by ogre View Post
Well.....here is another few cents and a different point of view. First there are arguments about comparisons to windows and versions of XP vs the move to Vista etc. But we are talking about a device...not the purchase of software. If i buy a PC i expect it to run a new OS released or 12 months aftter i bought the computer. However i may not get the software free.....but I do believe my device should be capable of running the software and if i choose to run the software i expect that support should be available.

Now for Nokia and the n900.
Simply put, whatever policy Nokia adopts must be profitable. When people buy a device, support is factored into the price. The support bundied into the price is for one (1) os. For handling new OS versions, there are 3 possibilities.

1. Leave the original OS as the supported version. If you want support, go back to the original version. This doesn't stop the new version being available....just not supported.

2. Make the new version the only supported version. If you want support you must upgrade to the new version first. This is a problem if some people could have a reason to resist the move.

3. Charge those who do move to the supported new version in order to recover the additional costs of supporting a fragmented user base.

Really....they are the only 3 options from an economic perspective. Nokia have traditionally chosen option #1, and for phones and even smart phones, it makes sense. Patches are treated as option #2.
However for a major release with the n900, i suggest they should offer #3. A supported upgrade attracting a price in an open source world still allows those not seeking any support to get the upgrade for free. So free if no support is needed, but for those who wish to get any support a fee.
You are correct about the options but not your text.

You are trying to compare a linux dist with windows. The big differens with windows and linux is that linux is free and open source. Windows you pay for. Thus this is not a workable and neither logical explanaition for a linux dist. In the linux world you try to make the kernel to work with as much devices as possible. I.e i can run Ubuntu on both my Pentium 1 and my dual core.

so the option 1 is good. The extra functions a new device will give is actually just another module for the kernel. The new OS:s should work on the old devices just as good.

Last edited by AlMehdi; 2010-03-09 at 12:42.