From 0a3211ba6b112d9190f366c6e8fde8a2cb7272f6 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Sarah Sharp Date: Tue, 12 Apr 2016 08:29:23 -0700 Subject: More details on the need for maintainable software. Motivate the need for maintaining system-level software across multiple generations of platforms by talking about the OEMs need to provide free updates to customers (sometimes for up to five years). Signed-off-by: Sarah Sharp --- open-source-101.txt | 31 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++- 1 file changed, 30 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/open-source-101.txt b/open-source-101.txt index 482a626..28776a0 100644 --- a/open-source-101.txt +++ b/open-source-101.txt @@ -65,7 +65,36 @@ Needs to understand: - Shared code is leveraged by competitors and partners alike. 4. Your corporate value add is in services and hardware IP, not software. - - No one pays for operating system software. + + - No one pays much for operating system software and customers are coming to + expect free updates. Apple devices are a rare exception. Apple started + offering upgrades in 2014 that cost around $69 to upgrade an older system + from Snow Leopard -> Lion. Microsoft announced Windows 10 would receive + free upgrades for "the supported lifetime of the device" (unclear what + exactly that means). Google Chromebooks have five years of free upgrades. + Android Google devices receive updates for an average of 21 months (nearly + two years). + + sources: + http://www.androidpolice.com/2015/09/17/software-updates-a-visual-comparison-of-support-lifetimes-for-ios-vs-nexus-devices/ + http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/01/windows-10-free-for-all-windows-8-1-and-windows-7-users-for-first-year/ + https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2015/01/21/the-next-generation-of-windows-windows-10/ + + Number of PCs shipped in the last five years: + 2011: 92.2 million + 2012: 90.3 million + 2013: 82.6 million + 2014: 83.7 million + 2015: 73.7 million + Total: 422.5 million units in the last five years - all could get upgraded + to Windows 10, and need continual support for upgrades + + http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/1893523 + http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2301715 + http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2647517 + http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2960125 + http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/3146617 + - "Vendor lock-in" via software is not a long-term strategy. - Hackers will dissect and replicate your closed-source software. (Note -- most execs will not understand decompiling, reverse engineering, watching -- cgit v1.2.3