Comments by "Anony Mousse" (@anon_y_mousse) on "Linux Kernel Kicked Out These Legacy WiFi Drivers" video.
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My thoughts, not that anyone will read them or care, is that it takes absolutely zero maintenance for code that was previously known to work if you never touch it or do anything with it. Not everyone can figure out how to use git to pull back in a piece of code to make a driver work for their old hardware, nor should a project maintainer expect them to. Yeah, compiling the kernel is somewhat complicated, but less so if you follow the instructions on how to get it compiled. So if they delete the code, they damn well better include instructions for any inexperienced users to know how to finagle git and pull the old code back in. They can make that an easier process and I hope they do. As for arguments about the old hardware being insecure, that's completely irrelevant considering the mitigations that can be made with regards to WiFi and the lack of range of these devices mean you'll probably use them next to the router and only in your own home anyway. Yeah, still potentially problem causing, but that's the risk anyone has to take when using older tech in any semi-serious manner. In short, it costs them more to delete this code and then accommodate for those that may still need it, either now or later, than it would to just leave it in place and never touch it, both in terms of them having to maintain instructions for how to bring it back or have a hassle from users that want it, as well as in terms of storage space and network bandwidth as the changes take up hidden space.
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