The first model of the Wii features backwards compatibility with its predecessor, the GameCube, having the ability to run its discs and use its controllers and memory cards.
Modifying a system in a way that does not allow backward compatibility is sometimes called "breaking" backward compatibility.[1]
A complementary concept is forward compatibility. A design that is forward-compatible usually has a roadmap for compatibility with future standards and products.[2]
A simple example of both backward and forward compatibility is the introduction of FM radio in stereo. FM radio was initially mono, with only one audio channel represented by one signal. With the introduction of two-channel stereo FM radio, many listeners had only mono FM receivers. Forward compatibility for mono receivers with stereo signals was achieved by sending the sum of both left and right audio channels in one signal and the difference in another signal. That allows mono FM receivers to receive and decode the sum signal while ignoring the difference signal, which is necessary only for separating the audio channels. Stereo FM receivers can receive a mono signal and decode it without the need for a second signal, and they can separate a sum signal to left and right channels if both sum and difference signals are received. Without the requirement for backward compatibility, a simpler method could have been chosen.[3]
Full backward compatibility is particularly important in computer instruction set architectures, one of the most successful being the x86 family of microprocessors. Their full backward compatibility spans back to the 16-bit Intel 8086/8088 processors introduced in 1978. (The 8086/8088, in turn, were designed with easy machine-translatability of programs written for its predecessor in mind, although they were not instruction-set compatible with the 8-bit Intel 8080 processor as of 1974. The Zilog Z80, however, was fully backward compatible with the Intel 8080.) Fully backward compatible processors can process the same binary executable software instructions as their predecessors, allowing the use of a newer processor without having to acquire new applications or operating systems.[4] Similarly, the success of the Wi-Fi digital communication standard is attributed to its broad forward and backward compatibility; it became more popular than other standards that were not backward compatible.[5]
In software
Compiler backward compatibility may refer to the ability of a compiler of a newer version of the language to accept programs or data that worked under the previous version.[6]
A data format is said to be backward compatible with its predecessor if every message or file that is valid under the old format is still valid, retaining its meaning, under the new format.[7]
Tradeoffs
Benefits
There are several incentives for a company to implement backward compatibility. Backward compatibility can be used to preserve older software that would have otherwise been lost when a manufacturer decides to stop supporting older hardware. Classic video games are a common example used when discussing the value of supporting older software. The cultural impact of video games is a large part of their continued success, and some believe ignoring backward compatibility would cause these titles to disappear.[8] Backward compatibility also acts as a selling point for new hardware, as an existing player base can more affordably upgrade to subsequent generations of a console. This also helps to make up for lack of content at the launch of new systems, as users can pull from the previous console's library of games while developers transition to the new hardware.[9] Moreover, studies in the mid-1990s found that even consumers who never play older games after purchasing a new system consider backward compatibility a highly desirable feature, valuing the mere ability to continue to play an existing collection of games even if they choose never to do so.[10] Backward compatibility with the original PlayStation (PS) is considered to have been a key selling point for the PlayStation 2 (PS2) during its early months on the market.[11]
Despite not being included at launch, Microsoft slowly incorporated backward compatibility for select titles on the Xbox One several years into its product life cycle.[12] Players have racked up over a billion hours with backward compatible games on Xbox, and the newest generation of consoles such as PlayStation 5[13] and Xbox Series X/S also support this feature. A large part of the success and implementation of this feature is that the hardware within newer generation consoles is both powerful and similar enough to legacy systems that older titles can be broken down and re-configured to run on the Xbox One.[14] This program has proven incredibly popular with Xbox players and goes against the recent trend of studio made remasters of classic titles, creating what some believe to be an important shift in console maker's strategies.[12]
Costs
The monetary costs of supporting old software is considered a large drawback to the usage of backward compatibility.[9][10] The associated costs of backward compatibility are a larger bill of materials if hardware is required to support the legacy systems; increased complexity of the product that may lead to longer time to market, technological hindrances, and slowing innovation; and increased expectations from users in terms of compatibility.[1] Because of this, several console manufacturers phased out backward compatibility toward the end of the console generation in order to reduce cost and briefly reinvigorate sales before the arrival of newer hardware.[15]
It is possible to bypass some of the hardware costs. In earlier versions of the PS2, a CPU core identical to that of the PS serves a dual purpose, either as the main CPU in PS mode, or upclocking itself to offload I/O in PS2 mode. Such an approach can backfire, however, as in the case of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (Super NES), which opted for the peculiar 65C816 over more popular 16-bit microprocessors on the basis that it would allow easy compatibility with the original NES, but NES compatibility ultimately did not prove workable once the rest of the Super NES's architecture was designed.[16]
Backward compatibility introduces the risk that developers will favor developing games that are compatible with both the old and new systems, since this gives them a larger base of potential buyers, resulting in a dearth of software which uses the advanced features of the new system.[10]
With the decline in physical game sales and the rise of digital storefronts and downloads, some believe backward compatibility will soon be obsolete.[15] Many game studios are re-mastering and re-releasing their most popular titles by improving the quality of graphics and adding new content. These remasters have found success by appealing both to nostalgic players who remember enjoying the original versions, and to newcomers who may not have had the original system it was released on. For most consumers, digital remasters are more appealing than hanging on to obsolete hardware. For the manufacturers of consoles, digital re-releases of classic titles are a large benefit. It not only removes the financial drawbacks of supporting older hardware, but also shifts all of the costs of updating software to the developers. The manufacturer gets a new addition to their system with name recognition, and the studio does not have to develop a new game.
See also
Bug compatibility, backward compatibility that maintains known flaws
^ abBelleflamme, Paul; Peitz, Martin (2010), "Strategies in standard wars", Industrial Organization: Markets and Strategies, Cambridge University Press, ISBN9780521862998
^Zeldman, Jeffrey (2006). Designing with Web Standards. Peachpit Press. pp. 15–16. ISBN0-321-38555-1.
^Winder, Steve; Carr, Joseph (2002), Newnes Radio and RF Engineering Pocket Book (3 ed.), Newnes, pp. 121–123, ISBN9780080497471
^Naresh Jotwani (2009), Computer System Organization, Tata McGraw-Hill Education, pp. 320–324, ISBN9781259081217
^Perahia, Eldad; Stacey, Robert (2013), "Foreword", Next Generation Wireless LANs: 802.11n and 802.11ac, Cambridge University Press, ISBN9781107016767
^Kay, Michael (2004). XSLT 2.0 Programmer's Reference. Wiley. p. 123. ISBN0-7645-6909-0. forward compatibility.
^Bos, Bert (2003). "Backwards Compatibility". What is a Good Standard?. Retrieved July 12, 2016.
^"Backwards Compatibility is the Only Way Forward". PopMatters. 2015-04-10. Retrieved 2019-11-05.
^ ab"Understanding Backwards Compatibility and How It Benefits Gamers". Tech Magazine. 2018-08-14. Retrieved 2019-11-05.
^"Sony Playstation 2(PS2)". Pnpgames. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
^ ab"Remasters aren't needed if the PS5 is completely backward compatible". Android Central. 2019-09-24. Retrieved 2019-11-10.
^Wales, Matt (March 20, 2020). "Sony clarifies "overwhelming majority" of PS4 games will be backward compatible on PS5". Eurogamer. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
^Leadbetter, Richard (2017-12-09). "Xbox One Backwards Compatibility: How Does It Actually Work?". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2019-11-10.
^ abStein, Scott. "Game consoles and the death of backward-compatibility: Why we don't care". CNET. Retrieved 2019-11-05.
^"The SNES Was Supposed to be Backwards Compatible?". Gaming Reinvented. 2015-08-10.
External links
Media related to Backward compatibility at Wikimedia Commons
January 19, 2023
backward, compatibility, sometimes, known, backwards, compatibility, property, operating, system, product, technology, that, allows, interoperability, with, older, legacy, system, with, input, designed, such, system, especially, telecommunications, computing, . Backward compatibility sometimes known as backwards compatibility is a property of an operating system product or technology that allows for interoperability with an older legacy system or with input designed for such a system especially in telecommunications and computing The first model of the Wii features backwards compatibility with its predecessor the GameCube having the ability to run its discs and use its controllers and memory cards Modifying a system in a way that does not allow backward compatibility is sometimes called breaking backward compatibility 1 A complementary concept is forward compatibility A design that is forward compatible usually has a roadmap for compatibility with future standards and products 2 Contents 1 Usage 1 1 In hardware 1 2 In software 2 Tradeoffs 2 1 Benefits 2 2 Costs 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksUsage EditIn hardware Edit A simple example of both backward and forward compatibility is the introduction of FM radio in stereo FM radio was initially mono with only one audio channel represented by one signal With the introduction of two channel stereo FM radio many listeners had only mono FM receivers Forward compatibility for mono receivers with stereo signals was achieved by sending the sum of both left and right audio channels in one signal and the difference in another signal That allows mono FM receivers to receive and decode the sum signal while ignoring the difference signal which is necessary only for separating the audio channels Stereo FM receivers can receive a mono signal and decode it without the need for a second signal and they can separate a sum signal to left and right channels if both sum and difference signals are received Without the requirement for backward compatibility a simpler method could have been chosen 3 Full backward compatibility is particularly important in computer instruction set architectures one of the most successful being the x86 family of microprocessors Their full backward compatibility spans back to the 16 bit Intel 8086 8088 processors introduced in 1978 The 8086 8088 in turn were designed with easy machine translatability of programs written for its predecessor in mind although they were not instruction set compatible with the 8 bit Intel 8080 processor as of 1974 The Zilog Z80 however was fully backward compatible with the Intel 8080 Fully backward compatible processors can process the same binary executable software instructions as their predecessors allowing the use of a newer processor without having to acquire new applications or operating systems 4 Similarly the success of the Wi Fi digital communication standard is attributed to its broad forward and backward compatibility it became more popular than other standards that were not backward compatible 5 In software Edit Compiler backward compatibility may refer to the ability of a compiler of a newer version of the language to accept programs or data that worked under the previous version 6 A data format is said to be backward compatible with its predecessor if every message or file that is valid under the old format is still valid retaining its meaning under the new format 7 Tradeoffs EditBenefits Edit There are several incentives for a company to implement backward compatibility Backward compatibility can be used to preserve older software that would have otherwise been lost when a manufacturer decides to stop supporting older hardware Classic video games are a common example used when discussing the value of supporting older software The cultural impact of video games is a large part of their continued success and some believe ignoring backward compatibility would cause these titles to disappear 8 Backward compatibility also acts as a selling point for new hardware as an existing player base can more affordably upgrade to subsequent generations of a console This also helps to make up for lack of content at the launch of new systems as users can pull from the previous console s library of games while developers transition to the new hardware 9 Moreover studies in the mid 1990s found that even consumers who never play older games after purchasing a new system consider backward compatibility a highly desirable feature valuing the mere ability to continue to play an existing collection of games even if they choose never to do so 10 Backward compatibility with the original PlayStation PS is considered to have been a key selling point for the PlayStation 2 PS2 during its early months on the market 11 Despite not being included at launch Microsoft slowly incorporated backward compatibility for select titles on the Xbox One several years into its product life cycle 12 Players have racked up over a billion hours with backward compatible games on Xbox and the newest generation of consoles such as PlayStation 5 13 and Xbox Series X S also support this feature A large part of the success and implementation of this feature is that the hardware within newer generation consoles is both powerful and similar enough to legacy systems that older titles can be broken down and re configured to run on the Xbox One 14 This program has proven incredibly popular with Xbox players and goes against the recent trend of studio made remasters of classic titles creating what some believe to be an important shift in console maker s strategies 12 Costs Edit The monetary costs of supporting old software is considered a large drawback to the usage of backward compatibility 9 10 The associated costs of backward compatibility are a larger bill of materials if hardware is required to support the legacy systems increased complexity of the product that may lead to longer time to market technological hindrances and slowing innovation and increased expectations from users in terms of compatibility 1 Because of this several console manufacturers phased out backward compatibility toward the end of the console generation in order to reduce cost and briefly reinvigorate sales before the arrival of newer hardware 15 It is possible to bypass some of the hardware costs In earlier versions of the PS2 a CPU core identical to that of the PS serves a dual purpose either as the main CPU in PS mode or upclocking itself to offload I O in PS2 mode Such an approach can backfire however as in the case of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System Super NES which opted for the peculiar 65C816 over more popular 16 bit microprocessors on the basis that it would allow easy compatibility with the original NES but NES compatibility ultimately did not prove workable once the rest of the Super NES s architecture was designed 16 Backward compatibility introduces the risk that developers will favor developing games that are compatible with both the old and new systems since this gives them a larger base of potential buyers resulting in a dearth of software which uses the advanced features of the new system 10 With the decline in physical game sales and the rise of digital storefronts and downloads some believe backward compatibility will soon be obsolete 15 Many game studios are re mastering and re releasing their most popular titles by improving the quality of graphics and adding new content These remasters have found success by appealing both to nostalgic players who remember enjoying the original versions and to newcomers who may not have had the original system it was released on For most consumers digital remasters are more appealing than hanging on to obsolete hardware For the manufacturers of consoles digital re releases of classic titles are a large benefit It not only removes the financial drawbacks of supporting older hardware but also shifts all of the costs of updating software to the developers The manufacturer gets a new addition to their system with name recognition and the studio does not have to develop a new game See also EditBug compatibility backward compatibility that maintains known flaws Compatibility mode Computer compatibility Deprecation Downgrade attack Emulator Flag day computing Legacy mode List of backward compatible games for Xbox One and Series X S List of Xbox games compatible with Xbox 360 ReactOS Shim computing Software regression Vendor lock inReferences Edit a b Belleflamme Paul Peitz Martin 2010 Strategies in standard wars Industrial Organization Markets and Strategies Cambridge University Press ISBN 9780521862998 Zeldman Jeffrey 2006 Designing with Web Standards Peachpit Press pp 15 16 ISBN 0 321 38555 1 Winder Steve Carr Joseph 2002 Newnes Radio and RF Engineering Pocket Book 3 ed Newnes pp 121 123 ISBN 9780080497471 Naresh Jotwani 2009 Computer System Organization Tata McGraw Hill Education pp 320 324 ISBN 9781259081217 Perahia Eldad Stacey Robert 2013 Foreword Next Generation Wireless LANs 802 11n and 802 11ac Cambridge University Press ISBN 9781107016767 Kay Michael 2004 XSLT 2 0 Programmer s Reference Wiley p 123 ISBN 0 7645 6909 0 forward compatibility Bos Bert 2003 Backwards Compatibility What is a Good Standard Retrieved July 12 2016 Backwards Compatibility is the Only Way Forward PopMatters 2015 04 10 Retrieved 2019 11 05 a b Understanding Backwards Compatibility and How It Benefits Gamers Tech Magazine 2018 08 14 Retrieved 2019 11 05 a b c Backward Compatibility for PlayStation 2 Next Generation No 39 Imagine Media March 1998 p 22 Sony Playstation 2 PS2 Pnpgames Retrieved March 15 2020 a b Remasters aren t needed if the PS5 is completely backward compatible Android Central 2019 09 24 Retrieved 2019 11 10 Wales Matt March 20 2020 Sony clarifies overwhelming majority of PS4 games will be backward compatible on PS5 Eurogamer Retrieved April 8 2020 Leadbetter Richard 2017 12 09 Xbox One Backwards Compatibility How Does It Actually Work Eurogamer Retrieved 2019 11 10 a b Stein Scott Game consoles and the death of backward compatibility Why we don t care CNET Retrieved 2019 11 05 The SNES Was Supposed to be Backwards Compatible Gaming Reinvented 2015 08 10 External links Edit Media related to Backward compatibility at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Backward compatibility amp oldid 1131650900, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
