Many end users find operating systems are using processor, memory, and storage resources at such increasing rates that a person who wants to install a new version is usually faced with replacing his or her computer or paying for required hardware upgrades. For example, many computers that were successfully using Windows XP could not support the hardware demands of Windows 7. Some people have speculated that the software companies plan for this obsolescence in order to maintain sales at levels which support profits for shareholders. Others say that software companies have to keep upgrading their OS to keep up with developments made by hardware companies. Which do you believe is true—software has to develop to keep up with hardware, or vice versa? Provide a rationale for your position. Could software companies maintain profits by charging an annual user fee rather than planning for new versions to be sold every few years to drive new sales? Why or why not?
I believe that it is not necessary to continually upgrade software. Every time I get used to an OS it changes and I have to learn it all over again. I also do not appreciate the inability to upgrade using the same computer in some cases. I think that people would like an annual users fee more than the time consuming and very expensive task of upgrades. I am not sure if that would yield the same profits, but it would make things easier for the users. I think that upgrades are a good thing for the people who want to use them and that the companies should continue to expand the software, but also allow people who do not want or need to upgrade to continue to use the old OS without it being so difficult. Once the OS changes it becomes really difficult to share documents between computers. For instance, the computer in my office uses Windows XP and my company will not pay to upgrade it. It also uses an older version of Word and other programs. Because of this I have e-mails that will not deliver, attachments that no one can open, and I cannot use my computer to do SNAP exams. It can be really frustrating.