>> It's not just a matter of "buy something better." That's easy.
>Indeed, that is easier and cheaper. Of course, continuing to use a system I already have is cheaper still. > What's not easy is that a) that adds another machine to the waste > stream, instead of continuing to get use from it, and b) someone has > to take the time to set up the new machine, test things, migrate > services, etc. to functionally replace the old one. That takes time > and effort, too, multiplied by the number of such systems out there. > (a) is false as newer hardware can already be taken from electronic waste, so > it does not add new waste. That is a gross overstatement. Electronics are NOT 100% recyclable. A fair amount of material still goes to waste, and there are all kinds of costs associated with those processes. Reuse is better than recycle for complex things like electronics. >(Also electricity isn't free everywhere.) Of course. > Maintaining support for ancient hardware costs too. And is more expensive per > device as the number of systems is lower. This will always be true if more than one architecture is supported. One will be more expensive (in labor) than the other. > [support assistance suggestions] I will keep this (and a couple others) that have listed specific suggestions and work on them as I have time. The idea of fundraising is an interesting one. > Which leads to the problem: most people who want this, seem to want to > continue to use old hardware (T60, N270). However, continuing to support i386 > has likely costs much higher than the replacement cost of said hardware... Which is probably why nobody really seems sufficiently motivated to actually invest resources. (Or do you?) Except that the "replacement cost" is not tied in any way to the "development cost" in a practical sense. There is no way to move resources from anywhere that I can use for "replacement cost." I'm on my own. That's true for development, too, of course. But you make it sound like there is money somewhere for replacement and there isn't. Also, HARDWARE replacement is the simplest and cheapest part. That doesn't address any of the time or expense in setting up and implementing a new system. That is far more expensive and time consuming than just buying a new motherboard. It's disingenuous to ignore this. > (Sadly you previously refused incoming mail as I got a bounce.) As you can imagine, I don't personally approve or deny each incoming email. It's possible my mail server denied your message based on anti-spam criteria. I do get incoming mail in general and I get mail sent to this list. If you want to troubleshoot this further, I can send you another account (off list) that we might use as a side channel.
