- Disc controllers live in Linux, although functionality remains unchanged
- Linux Patch Minor highlights the persistence of obsolete technology in the midst of modern storage advances
- Dysque discs are increasingly nostalgia instead of any practical storage utility
The disks, discarded for a long time as obsolete relics of the past, have unexpectedly returned to the Linux Development Center.
For the first time in almost three years, a new patch has been sent to order the ancient floppy driver code, including the elimination of unused macros, the replacement of obsolete constants and a simple rearrangement of headings to make the code easier to maintain.
The update was directed by Andy Shevchenko, who described the effort as a series of cleaning instead of the introduction of a new functionality.
Persistence of inherited technology
Although such adjustments seem minor, they show that this decades of decades have not yet been abandoned within the Linux ecosystem.
The decision to maintain the floppy disk support raises a broader issue of relevance.
Modern storage technology has moved far beyond the limitations of a 1.44 MB disk.
Today, the largest SSD options provide capacity terabytes, while cloud storage makes physical media unnecessary for most users.
Despite this, Linux continues to admit flukens, despite the fact that the controller is effectively orphan and largely intact.
This suggests that there are still narrow but persistent niches where the floppy access is still useful.
For example, in New Jersey state prison, inmates are limited to 20 floppy disks to store data related to cases, a measure implemented for security reasons, while all other storage devices remain prohibited.
The commercial side of the disk media is equally precarious. Sony, once the main supplier stopped production in 2010.
The remaining few points operate from reserves decreasing instead of continuous manufacturing.
A seller, Tom Persky, who described himself as the “last man standing” and Opera Floptpydisk.com, one of the few places where he can obtain disks, predicted in 2022 that the disc industry will last “another four years.”
With new discs no longer produced and existing supplies are reduced, the notion of active disk support seems increasingly difficult to justify.
Therefore, this Linux patch is less about pointing out a rebirth of the floppy disks and more of keeping the nucleus clean and orderly.
Without functional improvements, users still face the same limitations of archaic storage, with such a low capacity that barely contains a single modern document.
While enthusiasts can welcome the preservation of inherited compatibility, the practical argument remains weak compared to contemporary alternatives.
The performance of SSD, the durability and fall of prices make the continuous dependence of the floppy disks look more like nostalgia than to need.
Floppy drivers can remain in Linux for another time, but the update underlines their state as little more than a historical note.
Via Hardware Toms
