Orphaned technology
Orphaned technology refers to
Users of orphaned technologies must often make a choice continuing to use the technology, which may become harder to maintain over time, or switch to other supported technologies, possibly losing capabilities unique to the orphaned technology.[citation needed]
Reasoning
While technology can be abandoned due to an unfavourable design or poor implementation, abandoning a technology can happen for a variety of reasons.[1] There are instances where products are phased out the market because they are no longer viable as business ventures, such as certain medical technologies.[2]
Some orphaned technologies do not suffer complete abandonment or obsolescence.[
Technologies orphaned due to failure on the part of their startup developers can be picked up by another investor. One example is Wink, an IoT technology orphaned when its parent company Quirky filed for bankruptcy. The platform, however, continued after it was purchased by another company, Flex.[4]
Examples
Some examples of orphaned technology include:
- Coleco ADAM - 8-bit home computer
- TI 99/4A - 16-bit home computer
- Mattel Aquarius
- Apple Lisa - 16/32-bit graphical computer
- Newton PDA (Apple Newton) - tablet computer
- DEC Alpha - 64-bit microprocessor
- HyperCard - hypermedia
- ICAD (KBE) - knowledge-based engineering
- Javelin Software - modeling and data analysis
- LISP machines- LISP oriented computers
- m68k and PowerPCoperating system
- Microsoft Bob - graphical helper
- Windows 9x - x86 operating system
- Mac OS, OS/2)
- Prograph - visual programming system
- Poly-1 - parallel networked computer designed in New Zealand for use in education and training
- Mosaic notation program - music notation application by Mark of the Unicorn[5]
- Gibson[6]
Symbolics Inc's operating systems,
User groups
User groups often exist for specific orphaned technologies, such as The
See also
- Orphan works
- Abandonware
- Planned obsolescence
References
- ^ a b Leckie, Cameron. "The abandonment of technology". resilience. Retrieved 2023-06-03.
- ISBN 9781439812334.
- ISBN 047144653X.
- ^ Staff, Connected World (October 2018). "October 2018: Abandoned Tech: When IoT Devices and Solutions Get Left Behind". Connected World. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
- Sibelius (software)
- ^ (2 September 2009). Opcode Web site finally taken down. CNET
- ^ "Reliving Hong Kong Newton User Group". Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2006-09-27.
- ^ "About Us". Association of Lisp Users. Archived from the original on 2013-01-21. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
- ^ "Newton Reference". Panix.com. 1998-02-27. Retrieved 2017-04-03.