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Firmware 3.21 to remove "Install Other OS" feature

 
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mister_playboy



Joined: 29 Dec 2007
Posts: 28

PostPosted: Mon Mar 29, 2010 3:48 am    Post subject: Firmware 3.21 to remove "Install Other OS" feature Reply with quote

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2010/03/28/ps3-firmware-v3-21-update/

I wish I could say I felt this was only an April Fool's joke... Sad
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Jens



Joined: 11 Nov 2007
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Mon Mar 29, 2010 12:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wow, this is really sad news. I'm afraid we have this hack to thank for that.

I'm seriously thinking whether to buy a second (1st or 2nd-generation) PS3 just to keep it at an 'old' firmware status and be able to tinker with it when I like.
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bdole



Joined: 25 Mar 2008
Posts: 16
Location: Raleigh, NC

PostPosted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 12:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

From a customer relation point of view, I think this is a terrible move by Sony. It's a continuation of their practice of coming up with innovative features/products only to take them away, not support them, or have very limited compatibility for them. For example, SA-CD, SA-CD on PS3, Bravia Theatre Sync on some devices not others, the best sounding mp3 player on the market that gets no firmware updates to fix its issues, etc.

That being said, was this feature really of any value? I have yet to find one report that made it seem more useful than a netbook or other computer in the house.

*Ok. I see where some are loading game emulators in Linux to play older console games like Nintendo, etc. on their TV instead of computer. Anything else?
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Jens



Joined: 11 Nov 2007
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 9:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

bdole wrote:
was this feature really of any value? I have yet to find one report that made it seem more useful than a netbook or other computer in the house.

There may not (need to) be more value in it than that. I suspect one major reason was positive PR: to gain favourable publicity and credibility based on stories about use of (clusters of) PS3 consoles as supercomputers by scientific labs. I tend to think such stories may have been exaggerated, considering the restrictions imposed on the use of other OSs -- quite limited RAM and no access to the power of the graphics processor.

One other reason for the original option I have heard is a trick to circumvene certain import taxes, using the linux option to get the product classified as a computer rather than a games console. If true, that cost benefit must have lost out to perceived disadvantages by 2009 with the introduction of the PS3 Slim, which already lacked this possibility.
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The Seventh Taylor



Joined: 17 Aug 2007
Posts: 401

PostPosted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 9:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

What strikes me in all this is how many bloggers and internet journalists (examples here and here) are mixing up two very different things, stating there was very little uproar when SACD was removed yet a lot now that the Other OS option is withdrawn. These comparisons are very flawed.

Sony removed SACD from new models introduced at significantly lower price points late 2007. The OS analogy here is the introduction in 2009 of the PS3 Slim which lacked the option to install another OS. The installed base of consoles was left unaffected then, and there was very little outcry.

Now Sony retroactively almost forces the other OS out of the devices already owned by consumers. That's a very different thing that hasn't happened with SACD playback or PS2 compatibility: users who install v3.21 will still have or lack these features depending on what they bought originally.

If that changes with future system software updates there will very likely be another uproar (and I suppose some will file class action lawsuits too).

What probably added to the confusion was GeoHot's mistaken assertion that SACD support and 'software emulation' of PS2 compatibility were entirely software-based.
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Brandon B



Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 392

PostPosted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 4:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

People are using this capability for two worthwhile ends -

Low cost access for hardware to learn Cell programming (workstations are $$$);
Clusters to run simulations with very high performance/cost ratio.

Not typical gaming consumers, but there are some for who this is an issue.

Also, as mentioned, it sets a precedent for removing capabilities from older machines. Could BC be next?
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Jens



Joined: 11 Nov 2007
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 10:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Brandon B wrote:
People are using this capability for two worthwhile ends -

Low cost access for hardware to learn Cell programming (workstations are $$$);
Clusters to run simulations with very high performance/cost ratio.

Not typical gaming consumers, but there are some for who this is an issue.

I guess for those having the latest firmware is not essential and they can choose simply not to upgrade anymore.

Quote:
Also, as mentioned, it sets a precedent for removing capabilities from older machines. Could BC be next?

I doubt it. First of all I can't see any potential harm in it for Sony. Secondly, I don't think they'll get away this easily with removing the Other OS option. This is like begging for a Class Action lawsuit.
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Yuri



Joined: 28 Aug 2007
Posts: 162

PostPosted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 10:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Interesting development, apparently feasible with a relatively simple hack: Other OS enabled with FW v3.21

http://geohotps3.blogspot.com/2010/04/otheros-supported-on-321oo.html
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Brandon B



Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 392

PostPosted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 2:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jens wrote:
Secondly, I don't think they'll get away this easily with removing the Other OS option. This is like begging for a Class Action lawsuit.


And so your prediction begins to bear a bit of fruit:

http://www.playstationuniversity.com/ps3-owner-refunded-without-return-for-missing-other-os-3555/
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Brandon B



Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 392

PostPosted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 3:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

And Sony (maybe) parries the thrust:

http://www.thinq.co.uk/news/2010/4/14/sony-refuses-to-sanction-ps3-refunds/
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mister_playboy



Joined: 29 Dec 2007
Posts: 28

PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 5:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Brandon B wrote:
And Sony (maybe) parries the thrust:

http://www.thinq.co.uk/news/2010/4/14/sony-refuses-to-sanction-ps3-refunds/


The law seems fairly clear on this. They advertised a feature which has been since been retroactively removed, and thus they are liable. This protection lasts for 6 years after the sale and we are well within that time period since the first PS3s were sold.
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Brandon B



Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 392

PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 12:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I hope whatever judge hears the case agrees the law is clear.

My faith in judges diminishes on a near daily basis though.
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Jens



Joined: 11 Nov 2007
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Fri Apr 30, 2010 1:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

And here you have it:

Sony sued for dropping Linux from PS3
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Jens



Joined: 11 Nov 2007
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 11:37 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Judge throws lawsuit out of court:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/23/psn_hack_lawsuit_dismissed/

I thought the class action suit about the Other OS removal had finally been concluded but this is a more recent case: about the massive PSN hack. I hadn't even realized there was a suit about this.
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