Oh what fun, this topic again. Also, sarcasm. I'd like to respond to a couple of Charles' points in turn with a few thoughts.
Charles said: "The older computers could still use Dropbox if no changes were made to Dropbox. No changes had to be made, because it worked just fine on the newer machines, as far as I know." Have you seen the list of open bugs and feature requests that Dropbox developers work from? Me neither. I know I've made a few additions to their workload though via their support team, and those submissions were based on usage of what you'd call a new machine (Windows 7). So, there are apparently changes that need to be made, and realistically neither of us know enough about the Dropbox codebase to speculate about whether those changes would have a significant impact on XP support. Charles said: "The only reason we "have to keep up with today's technology" is because the producers of hardware and software and web sites are forcing us to do so by making their sites and products unaccessible with what we choose to continue using and which we are comfortable and familiar with." Really? That's the *only* reason? For someone who insists on a description of what they'll find being present on an almost entirely spam-free list before he'll open a link (a security precaution which will hardly ever save your bacon nowadays), you've sure got your head buried in the sand when it comes to security in this context, which btw, is the main reason that XP is being phased out across the board. There are plenty of hardware related developments too that'll Benefit blind and sighted users alike that XP just wasn't built to take advantage of (higher RAM capacity and better energy efficiency are the two that spring most readily to mind here). I'm not saying that none of this is about money, or claiming that Microsoft or developers close to them have never had alternative agendas, but I am saying that there's much more to this than change for the sake of change just to make money. Charles said: "For instance, in order to use Microsoft's Windows 10, which has a web browser that is not able to be used with screen readers, you need the latest version of JAWS, which some people cannot afford." And why do you think that is? That'll be FS forcing an upgrade path on people to... yep... you guessed it... MAKE MONEY! Secondly, there is a well established alternative screen reader that A) doesn't have a prohibitive cost barrier and B) can do pretty much everything that JAWS can do unless you happen to rely upon commercial JAWS scripts (ironically, some of which are a transparent cash grab far and beyond what Microsoft are trying to foist on you). Maybe take NVDA for a spin for a week or two. The learning curve for JAWS users is fairly shallow nowadays, and they've just put out some swanky training material too. Charles said: "Apple, on the other hand, allows older technology such as iPhones to work with even the newest firmware." This one is hilariously misinformed. Hate to break it to you, but the length of life for iOS devices is something that Apple has only taken to in recent years. Again, security and money (though probably not in that order) will be two core reasons why it's become the case. To give you one recent example of an area that hasn't benefited from what you're calling a philosophy: I'm writing this on a Macbook Pro which has both Mac OS and Windows installed. That setup is best for me because I need some software which is only accessible in one or t'other of those systems to be able to do my job. On the Windows side, I'm running Windows 7. Why? Because Apple yanked the rug out from XP support, moreover, they did it a significant time before Microsoft ended support. Did I find the change to 7 a bit uncomfortable for the first week? You betcha. Do I find using XP just as unsettling now that I've found quicker ways to do things that didn't exist in XP? You betcha. Did I find Windows 8 and Windows 10 systems equally weird when I spent an afternoon with them? Again, you betcha. My point is that, in many, many cases, familiarity is the key. I'm as guilty as the next man of getting familiarity, functionality and accessibility muddled up in my mind until I analyze the situation rationally, so I get how easily it happens, but it's a mindset that only serves to hold people back in the long run. Just my 2 cents. Scott On 4/26/16, Charles Rivard <wee1s...@fidnet.com> wrote: > The older computers could still use Dropbox if no changes were made to > Dropbox. No changes had to be made, because it worked just fine on the > newer machines, as far as I know. The reason most often given for dropping > > support for XP is that, "You've got to keep up with today's technology." To > > me, this is lame. Whatever happened to backward compatibility? The only > reason we "have to keep up with today's technology" is because the producers > > of hardware and software and web sites are forcing us to do so by making > their sites and products unaccessible with what we choose to continue using > > and which we are comfortable and familiar with. For instance, in order to > use Microsoft's Windows 10, which has a web browser that is not able to be > used with screen readers, you need the latest version of JAWS, which some > people cannot afford. I would rather stay with what works than forage into > > what isn't as reliable and dependable. Apple, on the other hand, allows > older technology such as iPhones to work with even the newest firmware. The > > 4S will be phased out, but it has been around, and it still works with the > latest firmware update. Why don't others follow the same philosophy? They > > would keep their share of the market, and probably even increase their > customer base if they did. > > > > > > If you think you're finished, you! really! are! finished!! > -----Original Message----- > From: Stephen > Sent: Tuesday, April 26, 2016 8:43 AM > To: Gamers Discussion list > Subject: Re: [Audyssey] For those using Dropbox on older computers > > That's annoying > At 09:16 PM 4/26/2016, you wrote: >>Hi all, >> >>As some people use Dropbox for sharing betas and other game related things >> >>I >>felt this was relevant to the list. Over the summer Dropbox will be ending >>desktop support for Windows XP computers. On June 26, you will no longer >> be >>able to download the desktop app on windows xp or create an account with >>it. >>Then, on August 29, Dropbox will sign all XP users out of the desktop app >>and they will no longer be able to sign in from that system. The account >>will still be accessible from the online site or other devices. >> >>Here is the page on dropbox.com with more info: >> >>https://www.dropbox.com/help/9227 >> >>Karl >> >>--- >>Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org >>If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to >>gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. >>You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at >>http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. >>All messages are archived and can be searched and read at >>http://www.mail-archive.com/gamers@audyssey.org. >>If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the >> list, >>please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org. > > > --- > Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org > If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to > gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. > You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at > http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. > All messages are archived and can be searched and read at > http://www.mail-archive.com/gamers@audyssey.org. > If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, > please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org. > > > --- > Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org > If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to > gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. > You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at > http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. > All messages are archived and can be searched and read at > http://www.mail-archive.com/gamers@audyssey.org. > If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, > please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org. > --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gamers@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
