[stephenr]

How many PCs are shipped with the previous version of Windows and absolutely no way to upgrade it?

How many Windows apps are targeted at a single model of computer and fail to work on others because they use a different size monitor?

[wccrawford]

I guess you don't remember the old days then, huh?

While there wasn't a time you couldn't install a new version of windows, it used to require a professional due to all the issues involved.

And there were tons of applications and games that only worked on the right size monitor, and right speed of computer. Some computers even had a button that was used to slow them down for old software because of it.

[stephenr]

Yes, and society at large has moved on from that shit.

People used to accept racism and spousal rape in the "old days" but we don't anymore. No reason we should accept half-baked apps on half-baked devices.

[wccrawford]

You're being voted down for comparing rape to upgrading an operating system.

However, I agree that we've come to expect better. And Google is working on it. Each release of Android has been better about being resolution-independent and helping apps cope with screens that are of a different size, even if they weren't written for it.

And it's not Google's fault that many phones don't allow you to change the OS. They have certainly never recommended that approach. And some newer phones do not have this lock-in. And all the old ones have been hacked for it.

Apple is to be applauded for how far back IOS upgrades go, hardware-wise. I don't deny that they've done that right. But for Android, this is a hardware manufacturer problem, and something that a LOT of people complain about. I expect to see major strides in it soon.

Again, iPhone/IOS are basically the same thing, but Android is separated into hardware and software components. This makes it more versatile, but also brings some issues. It's just like the Mac vs PC all over again, as far as all that goes.