The reasons why some old computer software and hardware architectures are no longer updated can be understood from three aspects: technological development, economic benefits and market demand
Technological developments. Outdated technology: As technology evolves, new computer architectures offer greater efficiency, better performance, and lower energy consumption. Archaic architectures often fail to compete with modern technology and are therefore gradually becoming obsolete.
Compatibility issues: Modern software and operating systems often no longer support older hardware. In order to maintain compatibility, manufacturers and software developers need to invest significant resources, which is often not commercially cost-effective.
Economic benefits. Low cost-effectiveness: The cost of updating older systems is often high, and the maintenance and operating costs of these systems are also high, making it uneconomical to continue investing in these technologies.
Changing market demand: With the demand for higher performance, lower power consumption, and smaller size, manufacturers are more inclined to develop new technologies that meet these needs rather than continuing to maintain old ones.
Market demand. Shift in user needs: Over time, the needs of users have changed, and they are more inclined to use modern devices that are faster, more efficient, and more functional.
Driven by technological innovation: The development of new technological innovations such as cloud computing, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence requires greater computing power and higher energy efficiency ratios, which were not available in older architectures.
Reasons to get into the open source community.
Education and learning: Aging computer architectures are of great value in education and learning. They provide a great platform for learning the fundamentals of computer science and help learners understand how computers have evolved to the point they are today.
Historical and cultural values: These systems are part of the history of computing and are important for understanding the evolution of computing technology.
Hobbyists and research: For computer enthusiasts and historical researchers, these old systems provide a platform for research and experimentation.
Characteristics of the open source community: The open source community emphasizes knowledge sharing and free use, which is very much in line with the purpose of preserving and studying ancient computer architectures.
Therefore, although these ancient computer hardware and software architectures have gradually faded out in commercial and practical applications, they still maintain a certain place and influence in education, research, and hobbyist communities as part of the history of computer science.