5 ms·

Isn't it insane that we have to "revive" 4 year old devices? How is it unthinkable that even 10 year old device would just work out of the box even if it hasn't

Isn't it insane that we have to "revive" 4 year old devices? How is it unthinkable that even 10 year old device would just work out of the box even if it hasn't seen light of day since it was purchased?

leoedin 1mo ago
Yeah, it does seem crazy. My newest laptop is 5 years old, and almost every other computing device I have is older. This does seem to be caused by a badly set up Linux system though. The clock loses sync and the system can’t recover.
kingkongjaffa 1mo ago
Yeah, immediate thought was why should a 4 year old device be in need of any revival? Specifically a writing tablet, I assume it just works still. But after reading the article the scourge of 'always online' devices seems to have bitten. You need the time in sync for updates and cloud sync to work seemingly. Why these things are not more robust I don't know. It should have shipped day 1 with management software (that itself still works without updates) and a simple plug-device-into computer and drag files into it update mechanism as a method of last resort and direct PC / using PC internet connection update source.
JohnKemeny 1mo ago
You don't have to "revive" the device in order to use it. The problem was: out-of-sync device clock prevented software updates which in turn prevented cloud syncing. You don't need software updates or cloud syncing for the device to work. The fix is to set the clock and do the software updates.
- nextlevelwizard 1mo ago
  And why is time such a hard thing to handle in 2026?
  - 0x6c6f6c 1mo ago
    Time can be an issue connecting to Wi-Fi. Devices who've lost track of time often can't properly negotiate access to then get NTP updates to their time. Perhaps this could be solved, but it's a common problem for devices left for the batteries to go dry. It is a bit sensationalist to say this is reviving it though, which makes this sound like some wild issue.
    - yencabulator 1mo ago
      Frankly, consumer gadgets where time is >10 minutes off of trusted time service should force-set their time, instead of giving up. Defaults that make sense to servers with dedicated ops don't make sense for consumer products. Don't just run a default-config NTP client in a consumer product.
- fhn 1mo ago
  why does the date/time matter? Just update the thing.

leoedin 1mo ago

Yeah, it does seem crazy. My newest laptop is 5 years old, and almost every other computing device I have is older. This does seem to be caused by a badly set up Linux system though. The clock loses sync and the system can’t recover.

kingkongjaffa 1mo ago

Yeah, immediate thought was why should a 4 year old device be in need of any revival? Specifically a writing tablet, I assume it just works still. But after reading the article the scourge of 'always online' devices seems to have bitten. You need the time in sync for updates and cloud sync to work seemingly. Why these things are not more robust I don't know. It should have shipped day 1 with management software (that itself still works without updates) and a simple plug-device-into computer and drag files into it update mechanism as a method of last resort and direct PC / using PC internet connection update source.

JohnKemeny 1mo ago

You don't have to "revive" the device in order to use it. The problem was: out-of-sync device clock prevented software updates which in turn prevented cloud syncing. You don't need software updates or cloud syncing for the device to work. The fix is to set the clock and do the software updates.

nextlevelwizard 1mo ago
And why is time such a hard thing to handle in 2026?
- 0x6c6f6c 1mo ago
  Time can be an issue connecting to Wi-Fi. Devices who've lost track of time often can't properly negotiate access to then get NTP updates to their time. Perhaps this could be solved, but it's a common problem for devices left for the batteries to go dry. It is a bit sensationalist to say this is reviving it though, which makes this sound like some wild issue.
  - yencabulator 1mo ago
    Frankly, consumer gadgets where time is >10 minutes off of trusted time service should force-set their time, instead of giving up. Defaults that make sense to servers with dedicated ops don't make sense for consumer products. Don't just run a default-config NTP client in a consumer product.
fhn 1mo ago
why does the date/time matter? Just update the thing.