Performance, generality, and accessibility

Most software does a lot more than analogous software did in previous generations. This adds "background complexity." (Here is a good discussion of this.) Background complexity is usually bad for performance, both because it makes software do more (which takes time and uses resources directly) and because complex software is less modifiable. Internationalization and accessibility often add background complexity. (This will be obvious to many but not all readers. To get a flavor of the problem, pick a medium-complexity application that involves text and consider what is required for it to work work just as well with right-to-left and left-to-right text.)1 So, some pining for the old days of leaner, less bloated software is pining for software that emphatically did not "work for everyone." (To be clear: only some! Most software bloat has nothing to do with accessibility.) Performance isn't just people wanting video games to be snappy; it's a basic aspect of all software use. Many…