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0 pointsDalewyn2y ago0 comments

One of Linux's oldest arguments for using it is that it can be used to revitalize old hardware that other, newer software might not properly utilize.

If one were to rephrase it in today's language, Linux serve(d) to reduce e-waste.

So, yeah, it kind of is the distro's problem if they are moving away and against that mantra now.

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bdavbdav2y ago

There’s a crossover point though where the effort to support it is larger than the supply of newer hardware coming through. With the last x86 deaktop chips coming out in ~2006, I would bet there are very few viable use cases left. That’s 6 3-year cycles past.

withinboredom2y ago

I have seen many Windows 98 machines in the last ten years. I saw one just last week connected to a giant robot in a factory. So, if you are looking for use-cases for 32-bit, there's the fact that some giant machinery relies on computers that will never be updated.

Last I heard, even the last BlockBuster in the US is still using old PC's to run their DOS software. They harvest parts from old computers sold on e-bay. So, if you have any old computers laying around, they might be worth something these days.

gary_02y ago

You wouldn't really want to mess with the OS in cases like that, though. If you did, a lot of the OS-included drivers would probably not work due to removal or bit-rot, or 3rd-party drivers might not work with a much newer OS. The only reason you might want to upgrade is if the machine is Internet-connected, in which case you're probably just going to need a whole new box (if you need the old software, you'd probably resort to a VM), otherwise the new OS will run too slow (especially with things like new crypto/security). Or you can keep the old box but put it behind nginx or whatever.

Point of sale or industrial control computers are kind of just an offshoot of "embedded"; not something you need (or want) to run a browser or a modern GUI[0] on. You stick it in a cabinet or a kiosk and hopefully you don't have to think about it again.

[0] sadly also a browser

DalewynOP2y ago

I have a number of old computers lying around the house in closets, some 32-bit only. Linux not running on them anymore is actually pretty annoying since, as I said, that used to be one of its oldest mantras.

Outside of the enterprise crowd, Linux's next biggest audience are the tinkerers and hobbyists with too much free time and ancient hardware well past their Use By date. What a time it is that we can legitimately say it's better to run some version of Windows instead of Linux on them now.

Sesse__2y ago

The hobbyist Linux market generally tinkers with things like Raspberry Pis now, not ancient 32-bit x86 machines. (This is a natural consequence of the fact that sources for cheap hardware have changed a lot over the last twenty years.)

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