49 // Software longevity

The great works of human civilization can last for centuries—but software often decays in just a tiny fraction of that time. How much should this concern us in this increasingly-digital age? And as software creators, what can we do about it? Adam and Mark discuss the durability of papyrus vs CD-Rs vs the cloud; open-source Quake and remix culture; flat file formats; and digital preservation efforts like The Internet Archive and MAME. Plus: sometimes you just have to draw the rest of the owl.

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Show notes

• Cesna 172
• ForeFlight
• iPad aviation kneeboards
• The Long Now Foundation and Clock
• Buy it for life
• Metamuse episode on pricing
• Internet Archive
• CD-R
• MAME
• arcade game ROMs
• DOOM and Quake as open source
• Text Mode Quake II and DOOM on a pregnancy test
• Python 2 and 3
• farmers fighting to repair and modify their tractors
• How To Draw an Owl
• Ship of Theseus
• CalDAV
• SQLite long-term support
• TIFF extensible file format
• Cambria data lenses
• the Lindy effect
• Arc browser, Not Boring Apps