wat is backwards compatible

[person]

u guys probably think this is a stupid question, but wat does "backwards compatible" mean. thanx in advance

EDIT : please, please help. i need to know for exam

[md]

backwards compatible means that if you reverse all the instructions in the program it wil runs the same as before.

[MihaiG]

except for variable declaration in certain progs

[person]

Quote:

backwards compatible means that if you reverse all the instructions in the program it wil runs the same as before.

can u elaborate? thanx

[wtd]

Wow... two people who have no idea what they're talking about. Consider a common example of backwards compatibility.

Your desktop computer likely has USB 2.0 ports. Your keyboard and mouse connect via USB 1.1. You still plug them into the same ports. That's backwards compatibility in action.

You add new features, but you retain the ability to use older peripherals or software with the new stuff.

[Hikaru79]

person wrote:

Quote:

backwards compatible means that if you reverse all the instructions in the program it wil runs the same as before.

can u elaborate? thanx

Person, they are messing with your mind. Either that or they truly have NO clue what they're talking about, but I'm tending more towards the first choice. That definition is COMPLETELY off-the-wall

What it really means, and I'll provide examples, is that the new version will work with older versions. wtd gave an example of HARDWARE backwards compatibility, but you might have meant software so I'll give an example of that too.

Sun's Java compiler has gone through many versions. They're on 1.5.1 stable now. However, The 1.5.1 can STILL compile programs written for 1.4.2, and under. It hasn't suddenly lost the ability to communicate (aka be compatible) with older versions (aka backwards).

That's it in a nutshell =) If you gave a specific example you were wondering about, we could probably be more detailed.

As for Cornflake... be nice They can't always tell when you're joking

[md]

Hikaru79 wrote:

person wrote:

Quote:

backwards compatible means that if you reverse all the instructions in the program it wil runs the same as before.

can u elaborate? thanx

As for Cornflake... be nice They can't always tell when you're joking

What? I just couldn't resist temptation

[TheZsterBunny]

Think nintendo gameboys.

The original game boy ran only original gameboy games.
The gameboy pocket ran gameboy pocket and original gameboy games.
The gameboy color ran gameboy color, gameboy pocket, and gameboy games.

The gameboy advance...
The gameboy advance SP

...and the nintendo DS. which doesn't count.

-Z

[wtd]

TheZsterBunny wrote:

...and the nintendo DS. which doesn't count.

Why not? Doesn't it play GBA games too?

[Dan]

TheZsterBunny wrote:

Think nintendo gameboys.

The original game boy ran only original gameboy games.
The gameboy pocket ran gameboy pocket and original gameboy games.
The gameboy color ran gameboy color, gameboy pocket, and gameboy games.

The gameboy advance...
The gameboy advance SP

...and the nintendo DS. which doesn't count.

-Z

LOL, thats excatly the example i was thinking of.....tho i did not whont to post it

[Neo]

person wrote:

EDIT : please, please help. i need to know for exam

I would write down cornflakes definition, all the rest are wrong!

[Amailer]

wow, hm people tend to extend topics more then its needed.
WTDs example was the best and explained what was needed to be explained, what more is needed

[Paul]

Give him what he wants:

code:

backward compatibility <jargon> Able to share data or commands with older versions of itself, or sometimes other older systems, particularly systems it intends to supplant. Sometimes backward compatibility is limited to being able to read old data but does not extend to being able to write data in a format that can be read by old versions. For example, WordPerfect 6.0 can read WordPerfect 5.1 files, so it is backward compatible. It can be said that Perl is backward compatible with awk, because Perl was (among other things) intended to replace awk, and can, with a converter, run awk programs.