DP thoughts on companies removing features from consoles

[YoshiM]

Ok, so Sony has released their update that removes the "Other OS" functionality from non-slim PS3 systems. Granted most of us here probably doesn't run Linux on their PS3 so this change wouldn't affect the majority. I know a bunch here are probably going to state that it's no big deal, losing the ability to use the PS3 as a computer and with the feature in and of itself I'd have to agree.

But...

What I don't agree with is that Sony (or any company) can just remove a feature that you paid for with a flip of a switch with no compensation, no matter how unused a feature may be. The act essentially devalued my machine. Sure a person can refuse (you have to download the update and say "yes" to install) but then you can't connect to PSN (which they can do as it's a service), play games purchased from the Playstation Store (because you have to sign into PSN-so that's bogus) and possibly not play new retail games that require that particular firmware update. That's not much of a choice-besides the lack of access to PSN, the rest is essentially an ultimatum.

Now, what's to say they won't remove or change other features we paid for in the future? The thought may be alarmist but if Other OS situation passes on with no real opposition, it sets a precedence. Sony said they pulled the OS option for "security". Ok, what if they limit use of USB drives? Sorry, can't pull images, audio or video off of your flash drives-security. Upload them somewhere and get them that way or stream them from your PC on the network. Web browsing? Nope, can't let you use that anymore as there could be things on the web that could compromise your system. Or, for that illogical extreme: sorry, you can't replace your hard drive anymore. There could be software on there that could be used to compromise security so all new PS3's will have a proprietary setup while older units will have the data tied to the drive that can't be transferred unless the unit is serviced by Sony.

What about the future? What's to say that these game companies won't load their launch systems up with a bunch of stuff to entice buyers and then slowly strip it down because of licensing, security or whatever reason they give?

Unlikely? Probably. Then again, Sony DID state when the Slims came out that they would not tamper with the Other OS option in a press release.

Thoughts on this concept of give and take?

[Richter Belmount]

It bad.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Sony has spent the past five years combating piracy unsuccessfully on the PSP.

Sony has also spent the past 3 years combating piracy successfully on the PS3.

While whatever development that has been done by the hacking community will likely not be at this point squashed by the removal of Linux via firmware update, I don't see anything wrong with a company, be it Sony, Nintendo or Microsoft removing a feature that is or will become an easy gateway to piracy on any given system.

While I don't have a strong/polarized personal position on piracy, I think that it's silly for the gaming community to get "up in arms" over a move that was CLEARLY made to prevent it from happening.

This also isn't the first time historically that Sony rapidly removed a feature that saw limited use and that allowed for easy piracy. The PS2 hard drive port was quickly removed almost simultaneously with the rise of HDD Loader discs from Hong Kong.

The Linux community has already been very vocal about the fact that the PS3 is a sub-par platform for running the OS, and I've seen it called "severely limited" or a "novelty at best" ... and I suppose it's unfortunate that the very very small segment of PS3 owners that are losing the feature are essentially collateral damage in this protective measure, but seriously - Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo ... they all have a right to protect themselves, and their software developers from suffering the losses that hacks like custom firmwares, mod-chips, external boot loaders, etc. cause.

As far as the consumer losing what they "paid" for ... read your end user license agreements, you may have purchased the hardware but Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo owns everything else (the network, the firmware and the OS) and retains the right to make whatever changes they see fit whenever they want. And they all have in one way or another.

If you weigh what Sony has given PS3 users throughout the course of this console generation for FREE through regular OS and feature updates, I think that probably equals if not out-weighs what little they're now taking away in an optional Linux install. (And no, what they've given probably does not out-weigh the loss of PS2 BC)

But, hey, if you were a hardcore Linux PS3 user, I do feel for your loss. It does suck to have features stripped out, but Sony can't afford any more millions in losses in piracy right now.

[skaar]

Protip: Removing a feature for reasons other than safety that was advertised and included in a product that was sold for is likely a lawsuit waiting to happen.


But, hey, if you were a hardcore Linux PS3 user, I do feel for your loss. It does suck to have features stripped out, but Sony can't afford any more millions in losses in piracy right now.

This is not a valid reason.

[chrisbid]

combating piracy... heh

ease of piracy is one of the unspoken reasons for the original playstation's success. up until now the company that has been the most successful at stopping piracy (n64 and gamecube) was nintendo. now the wii is fairly easy to hack while sony's and nintendo's spots on the sales charts.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Protip: Removing a feature for reasons other than safety that was advertised and included in a product that was sold for is likely a lawsuit waiting to happen.

This is not a valid reason.

Well, more power to anybody who wants to sue Sony for their emotional and/or financial losses.

[kupomogli]

There are about 10 people who actually use Linux on their PS3 out there because Linux sucks on the PS3.

Like what Frankie said. Sony has added stuff to the system. People only look at the fact that Sony is removing the Other OS, but they're not looking at what Sony has added since launch.

Here's a few things Sony has added.

-Ability to transfer saves back to a PSX/PS2 memory card.
-Ability to play PSN downloaded PSX games on the PS3. Formerly a PSP only feature.
-Trophy Support
-Ad hoc party. Supports the PSP to play ad hoc only games over long distances.
-Facebook
-Playstation Home
-Scene search on any video file(hit Square. 15/30 sec or 1/2/5 minute intervals.
-Dynamic Normalizer

There's probably more things that were added, but that is what I know they've definitely added. To a lot of people, most of those features are far better than a piece of crap Other OS that people don't ever use and most have probably never even tried to use.

For me. Ad hoc party is my most favored feature that they've added. Makes pretty much any PSP game I own infrastructure. I can even play emulators infrastructure if I want to play two frames per second(this was test with someone who lives 20 minutes away.)

So why don't people take a look at features Sony has added instead of complain about a useless feature that they'll attempt to use once and then never use it again, in which has remained unused for most people.

[YoshiM]

@Frankie: I agree the Linux option was a fairly useless feature except for those that wanted to use it but it's still a feature bought and paid for. While there is an EULA, those pieces of paper do not give a company rights to do whatever they want. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, I don't think EULA's that have been challenged held up in court. But that's for another discussion.

This is more about the ethics: I bought a device that does X things-said so right on the box. Now the manufacturer waves a magic wand and poof, my device now does X-1 things. It's been devalued as it can't do everything it could when I bought it, even if I never used that feature.

Ok, so this is done to fight piracy. How many feature will gamers give up before those shrugged over the removal of Linux go "hey-waitaminute! I use that!"? Linux today then how about not allowing USB flash drives to be used tomorrow? Oh, you can still use the ports to charge your controllers but software wise (the USB ports ARE hardware and you bought that) but the software that allows the file access has been removed for security reasons. May seem far fetched but how many people hook their USB drives to their PS3's, in general (and not just we gamers)? I know I did once and that was to try to fix what I thought was a firmware problem (bad hard drive controller or something-had to send the unit in). So maybe it's not that far off to think that such a feature could be next on the chopping block.

A feature is a feature, no matter how mundane or useless it may seem to an individual. Either leave my machine alone and don't penalize me if I chose to use the feature I was sold (EULA or not-it's on the box, it's gotta have it. There's no clause on the box stating those features could go away) or rethink your products so you don't offer features that could ease the ability to exploit.

[kupomogli]

Oh wait. Also.

Microsoft(360 launch.) XBL will still be available on all your regular XBOX titles.

Microsoft(now.) To make XBL better for all of our users, we're removing support for regular XBOX titles.

[gepeto]

If it was such a useless feature why not leave it? I believe if I paid for it it is mine. Why try to strong arm me after I paid 600.00. Whether one uses it or not is the owners business. People have ps1 Bc they may never use it but is it okay to remove the feature. The fats were only there for a limited time anyway. There are a bunch of yrod and people are exchangeing them for slim.

I want every feature I paid 600.00 dollars for.

I bought a slim yesterday and was unable to deacitvate my console because sony was trying to force the update.

This dns change got me back online with no foced update issues.

Go to customize your network settings from XMB, and get to the part about DNS nameservers. Select custom, and enter the following IP as your Primary DNS:

67.202.81.137

Powercycle the ps3

Boom!, PSstore, PSN/online gaming and Home work perfectly. Video on demand doesn't but that's all, and Install other OS still works perfectly.


Jacked from gamefaq this got me in.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Heh.

Don't get me wrong - I'll say it again - it SUCKS that they need to strip this feature out. I don't personally like feature losses on my game systems mandatory or otherwise and I would NEVER even consider installing Linux on my PS3. I'm all about a system that can do "more" even if I never use those features.

But, let's all call a spade a spade - Sony is doing this as a last gasp effort to try to slam the door on the potential for piracy that they're obviously monitoring closer than we may be privy to.

That's it, that's the reason and the only reason. To claim that it's anything otherwise is really missing the point of the issue. It's not some kind of megalomaniacal move to hurt PS3 Linux users for no good reason.

I mean, it's not even AS mysterious and arbitrary as the stripping the PS2 BC (at least not the software version which I assume cost a HELL of a lot less than the EE chip version) from PS3s.

So, yeah, people have every right to be angry about it on a personal level and I'm not saying that any of those people are wrong, that's their prerogative ... but it doesn't change the fact that a company who is on the verge of actually starting to make a profit on a long-term loss-leading system has some type of right to TRY to stop that piracy through whatever means necessary. To assume that any major corporation would recognize that something like this was on the near horizon and NOT take steps to prevent it is just silly.

(Are we really collectively taking a position that a company shouldn't try to protect itself from piracy?)

And if your argument is ultimately about "loss of value" of something that you paid for - yes, I wasn't joking - if enough people that have an issue with this take Sony to court over it (seriously more power to them!) maybe they (and/or all of use who lose the feature) can get some type of reimbursement for the "loss" of the ability to install Linux. I'll take a free game or a check for $10 if there's one to be had.

[erehwon]

I agree the lot of you angry over this. It sets a bad precedent. I haven't used the install linux feature, but that's because Sony intentionally gimped it. They didn't allow access to the PS3's graphics processor is what I think they did.

I'm still annoyed they removed the PS2 BC. That was one of the major selling points for me. I don't think a console shouldn't lose features over time.

[Vlcice]

This also isn't the first time historically that Sony rapidly removed a feature that saw limited use and that allowed for easy piracy. The PS2 hard drive port was quickly removed almost simultaneously with the rise of HDD Loader discs from Hong Kong.

Sony did not come around to people who owned fat PS2s to remove the hard drives on the systems they had already bought - they removed that feature on new consoles released afterwards. There's a big difference between those two things, and it's not a valid comparison to try to equate them. That's why the PS2 BC and SACD support aren't valid comparisons either.

I support a company's right to protect themselves from piracy, but not when it means removing an advertised feature that customers bought the product for.

[PapaStu]

The PS3 had escaped piracy for one reason. Blu-Ray. Remove that BD disc and the floodgates open on what pirates would be able to do to the system. Discs are still super expensive, adoption is far from widespread and the cost return on a hacker getting it working i'm sure isn't worth their time... yet.

Only when Sony made the noise about removing 'Other OS' did the hackers start to pay attention to see what they'd be able to do with this potential back door.

PS2 BC was dropped because of the cost to put it into the systems, the continued diminished PS2 support (from both Sony and 3rd parties), the loss of PS2 quality once it shifted to the emulation-ish form and because within another year or two no one would care. I 'thought' I cared about XBox BC with my 360. I've now had my system for 3+ years and put 0 time into 'classic XBox titles'. The same would be said for my PS2 titles if my Phat PS3 played them.

The loss of a neutered 'Other OS' that ran poorly and was only being supported by a portion of the systems available for use wastes Sony's resources when they will have to undertake more testing to make sure that any firmaware update will support those functions, give a potential hole the size of a Mack truck for pirates to exploit.

Was everyone up in arms when Sony removed the parallel I/O on the older PS systems? Thats removing functionality that a number of games supported! Oh wait, it was mostly games that were older and were no longer available for sale and allowed for a Mack truck sized hole for pirates to exploit.

Was everyone up in arms when the PS2 was made into a PSTwo? The loss of a HDD! How will we play all those games ( FF XI, RE Outbreak 1/2) that supported it now!?!

In todays age, the systems, barring a major console revision ala the PS3 Slim or PSPgo/DSi will get these features via software updates and when they prove to be a potential point of contention (for the company or user), they get killed. Sucks? Sure. Are we really out anything? For the incredibly massive percentage of people who use the PS3 as it currently sits (PSN store/Home/streaming vids from Netflix/music player/Blu-Ray movie player/picture viewer/internet browser/PS3 game player) they don't even know or care that the function is (or was I should say) there.

If Sony removed the web browser from the PS3's capabilities, would you care? Do you REALLY use it? Would you now be at a loss with its deactivation?

[The 1 2 P]

I want every feature I paid 600.00 dollars for.

So the lessoned learned: Don't pay $600.00 for a console:wink 2:

[TonyTheTiger]

I don't remember who said it but I think it's a pretty good argument why Sony is actually hurting itself by doing this.

A lot of potential hackers were satisfied with Linux on the PS3. It wasn't great but it provided for better web browsing, emulators, and other little distractions. By removing the feature Sony effectively backed these people into a corner. The hackers are now unified and we'll see the kind of arms race that's happening on the Wii. Custom firmware is more likely to come about sooner now. Not necessarily because of piracy (though that's clearly what it'll be used for) but because it's the only way to get back what was taken away. If OtherOS was left alone then these people who are now working on CFW would have been spending their time playing MAME on Yellow Dog. Sony basically drew first blood and now the call to arms has sounded.

[scooterb23]

http://photogallery.filmofilia.com/data/media/76/clash_of_the_titans_30.jpg

RELEASE THE CRACKERS!!!

[ALAKA]

If Sony removed the web browser from the PS3's capabilities, would you care? Do you REALLY use it? Would you now be at a loss with its deactivation?

I sometimes use it, and I would care if it got taken away. Which leads me to say, it seems that some of you think that since taking away the other OS only screws over a small minority of users that Sony should be allowed to do what it pleases and remove features that were bought and paid for(which by the way does not equate to the hardware revision removal argument some of you brought up) and everything is A-OK because it doesn't effect you. That type of thinking reeks of unfairness.

Anyway in conclusion, Sony's problem with piracy shouldn't now become the people who use the Other OS's problem. But, alas unfortunately it has.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Best print April Fools gag goes to Game Informer...

They mentioned Sony's new revision of the PSP, since the Go tanked, called the PSPsp. They carry over the removal of the UMD drive from the Go, but also remove the d-pad, analog, screen and nearly all the buttons (except the triangle button). According to Jack Trenton, it should be out for the holidays for a paltry $499 msrp.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Anyway in conclusion, Sony's problem with piracy shouldn't now become the people who use the Other OS's problem. But, alas unfortunately it has.

So, let's say you know this arcade.

They have a bunch of games there that you like to play including a corner with 5 old classics in massive, heavy cabinets.

About 4 years into its operation it's owner discovers that there's a crack in the foundation caused by some infrequently played heavy classic arcade games. People have discovered that they can get in the crack after hours and somehow trigger all the newer games to play for free.

You're one of the people that does come during business hours and you play all your games legitimately.

The ONLY way that the owner can prevent this massive loss or revenue is to get rid of 5 classic arcade machines that caused the crack in the foundation and cement up the crack in the wall. Otherwise the total loss of daily revenue through theft of services will tank the business. He was advised by a contractor that having those classic machines anywhere in the arcade would cause the same situation again, so he opts to throw them away. (DP Forum members post about the machines in Arcade Alley and they're promptly carted away in pickup trucks and vans.)

Yes, it is a "limitation of services offered", but for the greater good and the ultimate continuation of the business, and while the loss of those 5 arcade machines "become the problem" of the people who play those and other games legitimately, it's ultimately the only reasonable move that the arcade owner can make to prevent complete financial disaster.

It's not arbitrary and it's not meant to be hurtful.

Even if you think the analogy is hokey, it's the same principle going on. Yes, people are losing something ... but for fans of the Playstation brand, it's a noble sacrifice. We haven't had to sacrifice much or anything in the way of PSP OS software/features and Sony has been ass-raped in piracy on that platform for several years.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

About 4 years into its operation it's owner discovers that there's a crack in the foundation caused by some infrequently played heavy classic arcade games. People have discovered that they can get in the crack after hours and somehow trigger all the newer games to play for free.

They must be Ataris. I'd argue that it's the buildings fault more than the games. The building either is in disrepair or the result of some dubious contracting work. After the owner gets the crack repaired, he can place the games back in their old location and those few that still enjoy playing classic games in the wild can have fun too.

Here's how I look at it...

So let's say you know this arcade, the owner has a Missile Command and An Asteroids Deluxe. They're the only two classics he has but they make $10 or so a week from the 20 or so people who come in to play them. They're taking up a lot of floor space, and he can make waaay more on a DDR if he puts it in it's place. He offers the two classics to a long time patron he knows and the guy agrees to buy them and take them home.

So now 18 people have no where to play Missile Command any more. It's really a shame because not everyone has the luxury of having extra space to accommodate such large cabinets. It may be available on the 2600, but it's not the same experience. And forget about replicating the black light effect and vector monitor of the Asteroid's Deluxe- it's impossible. Maybe you live in an apartment, or don't have an understanding girlfriend... but that's not the point.

You see, in this way it's sorta like a museum that has a lesser known Van Gogh like "A Pair of Boots". It may not be painted in the style he's most famous for, but it's a key work in understanding his formative years as an artist. The gallery decides to put it up for auction and replace it with a Thomas Kincade that depicts a quaint cottage in the evening. The museum figures it can get more foot traffic with a Thomas Kincade, because he's the "painter of light" goddamn it. Anyway so the painting sells to a private collector, who decides to put it in his mansion. Now all those art students and art history majors who raved about "A Pair of Boots," as a less obvious exercise in Impressionism (yet still a masterpiece) can't see the real thing anymore. That's terrible news because everyone knows that the only way to truly enjoy a Van Gogh is to see it in person. And that a Thomas Kincade can be enjoyed just as much if it was on a Christian-themed greeting card as if it was hanging in a gallery.

Now imagine for a second that this collector who bought this painting, was Hitler...

[Icarus Moonsight]

Damn, I thought you were Porksta there for a second at the end. :p

[TheDomesticInstitution]

Figured Godwin's law doesn't occur enough around here. It's a Saturday morning: enjoying my coffee, scratching myself- and I told myself "Fuck It," I'm taking something off the rails round here.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

They must be Ataris. I'd argue that it's the buildings fault more than the games. The building either is in disrepair or the result of some dubious contracting work. After the owner gets the crack repaired, he can place the games back in their old location and those few that still enjoy playing classic games in the wild can have fun too.

Here's how I look at it...

So let's say you know this arcade, the owner has a Missile Command and An Asteroids Deluxe. They're the only two classics he has but they make $10 or so a week from the 20 or so people who come in to play them. They're taking up a lot of floor space, and he can make waaay more on a DDR if he puts it in it's place. He offers the two classics to a long time patron he knows and the guy agrees to buy them and take them home.

So now 18 people have no where to play Missile Command any more. It's really a shame because not everyone has the luxury of having extra space to accommodate such large cabinets. It may be available on the 2600, but it's not the same experience. And forget about replicating the black light effect and vector monitor of the Asteroid's Deluxe- it's impossible. Maybe you live in an apartment, or don't have an understanding girlfriend... but that's not the point.

You see, in this way it's sorta like a museum that has a lesser known Van Gogh like "A Pair of Boots". It may not be painted in the style he's most famous for, but it's a key work in understanding his formative years as an artist. The gallery decides to put it up for auction and replace it with a Thomas Kincade that depicts a quaint cottage in the evening. The museum figures it can get more foot traffic with a Thomas Kincade, because he's the "painter of light" goddamn it. Anyway so the painting sells to a private collector, who decides to put it in his mansion. Now all those art students and art history majors who raved about "A Pair of Boots," as a less obvious exercise in Impressionism (yet still a masterpiece) can't see the real thing anymore. That's terrible news because everyone knows that the only way to truly enjoy a Van Gogh is to see it in person. And that a Thomas Kincade can be enjoyed just as much if it was on a Christian-themed greeting card as if it was hanging in a gallery.

Now imagine for a second that this collector who bought this painting, was Hitler...

But, in your analogy you're disregarding the loss or revenue via theft of service, in the case of the PS3 - software piracy, which is ultimately the only reason why Other OS is going away. Sony's not replacing Other OS with something more desirable or that will generate more revenue ... they're just trying to stop people from walking out with all the paintings in the museum through a crack in the wall.

Again, this isn't about Sony having some kind of agenda against those who appreciate whatever it is that Linux brings to the PS3 it's about an attempt at stopping piracy. (And it's amazing in and of itself that only NOW is it being touted as some kind of plus/positive of PS3 system ownership ... prior to all of this if somebody made a thread here about how awesome Linux was on the PS3, or even mentioned it casually in passing in a "what's good about PS3?" thread, they'd most certainly be kicked around a bit by PC Linux users for having that opinion.)

If Sony has determined that no amount of "patching" can rectify the "cracks in the wall" that leaving Linux present will cause now or in the future, then there's no reason for them to leave it in place for hackers to tinker with, and theres no reason for them to tempt fate by returning it in a later firmware update.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

But, in your analogy you're disregarding the loss or revenue via theft of service, in the case of the PS3 - software piracy, which is ultimately the only reason why Other OS is going away. Sony's not replacing Other OS with something more desirable or that will generate more revenue ... they're just trying to stop people from walking out with all the paintings in the museum through a crack in the wall.

Taking into consideration that I was being serious, of course?

[Richter Belmount]

Taking into consideration that I was being serious, of course?

Ur face

[kupomogli]

What we really see in this thread.

"Bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch. Sony sucks. Bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch."

[ALAKA]

But, in your analogy you're disregarding the loss or revenue via theft of service, in the case of the PS3 - software piracy, which is ultimately the only reason why Other OS is going away. Sony's not replacing Other OS with something more desirable or that will generate more revenue ... they're just trying to stop people from walking out with all the paintings in the museum through a crack in the wall.

Again, this isn't about Sony having some kind of agenda against those who appreciate whatever it is that Linux brings to the PS3 it's about an attempt at stopping piracy. (And it's amazing in and of itself that only NOW is it being touted as some kind of plus/positive of PS3 system ownership ... prior to all of this if somebody made a thread here about how awesome Linux was on the PS3, or even mentioned it casually in passing in a "what's good about PS3?" thread, they'd most certainly be kicked around a bit by PC Linux users for having that opinion.)

If Sony has determined that no amount of "patching" can rectify the "cracks in the wall" that leaving Linux present will cause now or in the future, then there's no reason for them to leave it in place for hackers to tinker with, and theres no reason for them to tempt fate by returning it in a later firmware update.

Analogies shouldn't be used the way you used it because you can't get a 1:1 correlation of what is happening. For your arcade analogy to work, the arcade machine would have to be hooked up to the internet to receive firmware updates, the machine would have to lose a feature that was rarely used in order to be able to use other features, etc. I understand why you are using it but it really will start changing the discussion if we start heading down the path of theoreticals.

Just because the potential for piracy exists, still doesn't give Sony the right to take what has already been bought and paid for. Basically, even if Sony has the right to do this, it doesn't make it right to do this.

[Icarus Moonsight]

What we really see in this thread.

"Bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch. Sony sucks. Bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch."

Hitler's already in play, you're gonna have to raise the fanboy outrage up a bit higher or come up with another solution... Say, imprisoning all Linux users, for example.

[jcalder8]

First I'll comment on the Arcade example:

For this to be a correct analogy, you'd have to be the owner of the arcade not the user. I'm the owner of my PS3 and now the person that I bought it from is changing what he sold me.

For the arcade example to work: You are the owner of an arcade with a nice new arcade machine. 4 years in and the company you bought it from is afraid that people might be using fake quarters to play the game, they force you to replace the coin system and at the same time they make it so that it can only use dollar bills. Sure it's a pain for anyone wanting to use quarters but tough.

Now on to the topic at hand. This is total crap in my opinion. Let's break this down to what it really is, Sony is scared they will lose money, pure and simple. Yes it comes down to piracy and legal issues and what not but if it wouldn't cost Sony any money they wouldn't give a rat's ass. Now for me the troubling aspect is what happens when they start to release PS2 games for download. Will they take away the PS2 BC from me because there could be some exploit that has yet to be proven and is not well known? It sure does make a nice excuse for anything they want to take away from us in the future.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Yeah, that seems to fit a lot better.

What of those people using these solely as Linux computers? I know there was an early niche for that. Or hospitals that were using them for imaging and diagnostics? The military has made use of them as well, I'll guarantee you that they, at least, can disable Sony's intrusion. I guess the others can just keep them off the internet, and never use it as a game console or anything else that makes it a PS3. So which side do you want to lose? Total BS.

If this is the state of their hardware management, maybe they should just go software (this was a common case given for N 4-5 years ago). Would save them the pain and the losses from the market forcing them out by not buying. Or they can just retrieve their heads from their own asses instead... The PS4 could dispense blowjobs, and they'd probably take that away too. LOL

Sony promises the Moon, but gives you a Mars bar. Hey, don't bitch! It's actually an upgrade... Mars is further away than the Moon ya know. :p

[c0ldb33r]

I didn't know about this update until yesterday when I tried to access the PSN Store. It said that I needed to apply an update, so I did. It downloaded and installed it, something that was surprisingly slow.

I didn't know that it removed the other OS option until just now. I'm pretty pissed off. I just bought my ps3 recently and purposefully bought an original 60GB hardware BC version. Why? Because it was the top of the line with all the features.

I admit it though, I never used the Linux OS option. I was going to at one point, but read online that it sucked, and forgot about it. I was hoping to use it to watch online videos on my TV, but apparently it couldn't do that.

What I'm really pissed off about is that no one told me that it was going to remove the other OS option.

If it had clearly stated "by installing this update, you are removing the other OS function", I would have made a conscious decision as to whether that option was important to me. If it was, I wouldn't have installed it. If it wasn't, I would have installed it. But the important part is that it would have been my choice. Sony's secretive and strong-arm techniques are ridiculous. They're no longer the 800 pound gorilla that they've been for the last two generations.

Someone earlier in this thread mentioned a possible law suit. It will happen. Not by me, but someone will start a class action just to get their slice of the pie. And they should. A lot of jurisdictions have consumer protection legislations that is designed to stop sneaky stuff like this. If it gets ignored, then the guilty party should be punished/sued.

[kupomogli]

Maybe everyone who has a phat PS3 will get $33.74.

[gepeto]

I didn't know about this update until yesterday when I tried to access the PSN Store. It said that I needed to apply an update, so I did. It downloaded and installed it, something that was surprisingly slow.

I didn't know that it removed the other OS option until just now. I'm pretty pissed off. I just bought my ps3 recently and purposefully bought an original 60GB hardware BC version. Why? Because it was the top of the line with all the features.

I admit it though, I never used the Linux OS option. I was going to at one point, but read online that it sucked, and forgot about it. I was hoping to use it to watch online videos on my TV, but apparently it couldn't do that.

What I'm really pissed off about is that no one told me that it was going to remove the other OS option.

If it had clearly stated "by installing this update, you are removing the other OS function", I would have made a conscious decision as to whether that option was important to me. If it was, I wouldn't have installed it. If it wasn't, I would have installed it. But the important part is that it would have been my choice. Sony's secretive and strong-arm techniques are ridiculous. They're no longer the 800 pound gorilla that they've been for the last two generations.

Someone earlier in this thread mentioned a possible law suit. It will happen. Not by me, but someone will start a class action just to get their slice of the pie. And they should. A lot of jurisdictions have consumer protection legislations that is designed to stop sneaky stuff like this. If it gets ignored, then the guilty party should be punished/sued.

The thing is sony put out so many updates this on definately got lost in the fine print. It was there and it is what caught my eye. I was lucky because most just update. I was able to access the psn network by changing the dns. But future games would probably require a 3.21 update.

[skaar]

What we really see in this thread.

"Bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch. Sony sucks. Bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch."

It's like the twilight zone version of "Kupo in a 360/Wii thread!"

[kupomogli]

It's like the twilight zone version of "Kupo in a 360/Wii thread!"

Wii, yes, but not 360 other than the Halo 3 ODST thread.

*edit*

As for the update. Mutliple sites came up with the info prior to it even being available. I updated it because I couldn't care less about losing Other OS. If you have a PC, which I'm sure everyone that knows about the Other OS being removed, your PC is faster than the PS3 Linux.

[c0ldb33r]

The thing is sony put out so many updates this on definately got lost in the fine print. It was there and it is what caught my eye. I was lucky because most just update.
I'll have to take your word for it that it was there. Because Sony was removing a feature, it should have been made plainly obvious.

[NayusDante]

Has anyone considered the possibility that they're freeing up valuable flash space for other features? I'm sure it's not a lot, just a program booter, but every kilobyte counts.

Personally, PS3 Linux was an afternoon worth of fun. If you've never tried it, imagine installing Linux on a computer just below the minimum specs. Then you tried getting all of your hardware to work right, but ONE THING was such a pain to set up that it didn't seem all that useful anymore (SIXAXIS...). And if you thought YDL was slow, you never tried PS3 Ubuntu. The PS3 wasn't designed to run a robust multi-use OS, such as Linux. Don't get me wrong, I liked having it, but it never did anything for me.

I'm trying not to see this as removing a feature. Given how it was handled and what little came from it, it's more like removing a wart.

Still, I'm surprised that they didn't go the other way: making a preinstalled (and preferably streamlined) Sony distro for basic desktop use. $299 for a basic desktop computer with gaming potential is very attractive to the average consumer.

[BetaWolf47]

Regardless of who's affected, there's no way you can blame Sony for this. If I were in Sony's shoes, I'd do the same exact thing. It's the fault of the hackers, and it's the legit users who are hurt.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Has anyone considered the possibility that they're freeing up valuable flash space for other features?

At this point, I'd bet the new feature will be the removal of the BD-drive...

[mnbren05]

Losing Linux is not a big deal to me, sucks for those that use it though. I suppose man will never invent a machine capable of operating on the internet, running the os of consumers choice, playing games, web browsing, downloading digital content... just pie in the sky dreams I suppose :wink 2: