(continued from previous image) part of why is that these companies also make their own file types, and make it difficult to-impossible to convert those file types without their specific software. by habit, i convert all research files to more generic versions (tat, pdf, tif, etc) so that i minimize risk of losing my shit but some stuff can't be converted. for example, we have a microscope that is perfectly functional, good. microscope, but its software is abandonware because the company. refused to maintain it. the company is still in business, still makes essentially the exact same software, but they made all of the old tech incompatible with new software to force people to buy the new microscope tech. it would cot quarter million dollars to replace this microscope. this perfectly good microscope. so like, i know a lot of people look at the original post hear and go "well op just wants old video games o play” (which is valid games companies should not be able to push shit to abandonware and then close it off) but also this is critical for like, biomedical research. if you had any idea how much basic infrastructure built on science relies on shit that is technically abandonware, you would probably be horrified.

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