Quote:
Originally Posted by tompe
MobiPocket just releases a new reader that uses some additional meta information. So of course they can change the format. Ol readers just ignore the new information.
|
So? That is true for everything in life. Anybody can change anyting at any moment. If it will be accepted is someting else. But is the power behind it is stong enough it will happen. A couple of years ago the governements descided to get rid of the lead in gasoline. That was a problem for old cars that couldn't run without it. Guess what happend? The lead went out, some cars got converted others went to the junkyard. New cars never had a problem to start with. Now everybody is running lead free.
Computers are easier. If Mobipocket wants to change its file system what's stopping you from using the old system for the next 50 years? Is it suddenly impossible to read your old books? Of course not. I'm sure they *will* change something somewere at some time. That is a process called progession. We do not use CP/M or OS/2 as an OS anymore. Almost nobody uses Word Perfect anymore. We do not us steam engines for trains anymore. Today I run software on my computers that has no chance of running on the computers I owned 20 years ago. Is that a problem? Not to me.
Any system you can think of can and will be changed in the future and at some point it wil be difficult to use the old system. To me that is irrellevant. When/if I buy a new reader in 3-5 years I will look at what is at the market then. Conversion is possible now between almost anyting to almost anything else. So it will also be possible then using today's software. The big exception of course is the 'standard' PDF format. That cannot be converted to anything in a reliable way.
It is simply not possible to make anything futureproof for the next 5 generations. So I'm not going to try. That is wasted time. I can use that time reading books