The Software Upgrade Threadmill and Life’s crazy chain of dependencies



Modern software development happens at a breakneck pace, and while staying on ancient versions (hello, Debian Stable / Ubuntu LTS / Android users) is not really a safe and realistic option anymore (try reporting bugs without getting laughed out of the room by upstream maintainers), it is becoming a challenge for users to keep up. When it works, it works… but when something breaks down in the upgrade threadmill, the chain of dependencies to get back on track can become absolutely ludicrous and throw your digital life in turmoil. Just like needing to replace that one light bulb…
Case in point: I’m finally publishing this article in 2022, while I initially meant to blog about this way back in 2017… but more stuff kept breaking all the time, resetting my productivity and accidentally adding more potential content for this blog post. More value for you, dear reader!
As someone who has been running Linux for 19 years (as of 2022), I think I know my way around most hurdles you can possibly encounter. Undoubtedly, running Linux-based operating systems on desktop/laptop computers has overall gotten incredibly easier compared to 2003, but also, as one gradually becomes highly dependent on specific tools and committed to well-oiled workflows, the upgrade threadmill can become a real high-stakes pursuit.
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Emulation is the practice of using a program (called an emulator) on a PC to mimic the behaviour of a home computer or a video game console, in order to play (usually retro) games on a computer.
Home computers were a class of microcomputers that entered the market in 1977 and became common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single non-technical user.
Back in the 1980s, home computers came to the forefront of teenagers’ minds. Specifically, the Amiga, ZX Spectrum, and Atari ST were extremely popular. They were hugely popular home computers targeted heavily towards games, but they also ran other types of software.
The Commodore VIC-20 is an 8-bit home computer that was released in 1980/1. It featured a MOS Technology 6502 CPU, with 20KB ROM and 5KB RAM although 1.5K of the RAM was used for the video display and aspects of the BASIC and kernal.
It offered limited low-resolution graphics (176 x 184) with storage provided by cassette and floppy disk.
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