Apparently, those of you who like to run Linux and other OS's on your PS3, kiss it goodbye. Thoughts, trolling, rants?

Academia is going to be pissed :p
PS3s are cheap and effective machines for scientific computing.

1)I couldn't care less. I have a PS3 but I use it as .....a game console
2)If you use it for scientific computing only, no one forces you to install the firmware.
3)Sony did a big stupid thing with this move. Why take away one of the things that are in favour of your console? Meh Stupid Sony.

The slim didn't include it but they didn't take it away from the machines that could.

Ahh that makes sense then
Actually no it doesn't but I understand where my confusion came in...

That's a really crappy thing to do you someone's customers after they bought the product. If they removed backwards compatibility then their would be big problems like more piracy and hacking which Sony does not want. Someone give me a face palm.

What doesn't make sense in what I said? I was trying to eat a hamburger and typing eloquently with one hand was at the bottom of my priorities :(

Most tech gadgets don't come with everything you'd like them to have, but the better the hardware, the better it could get by means of modding. Thus I have a Samsung Omnia with a MUCH better look and feel, a Sony PSP with lots of cool homebrew apps and games and probably that's how PS3 owners (I'm not one of them) make their devices run certain apps that probably fix and enhance internet navigation, video playback and stuff like that.
Are PS3 modders stopping here? No. PSP modding breaks PSN, but modding geniuses are working on fixing exactly that, and it already works in many firmware versions. PS3 modders will certainly do the same if they have the chance.
Is it cool not having the prerogative of modding your device? No. Modding your device'll probably void your warranty, among other problems, and you should be able to do whatever you like with your device, you paid for it.
Even if you think people SHOULDN'T be able to do whatever, is it fair to lose that prerogative AFTER you bought your device, perhaps counting on the feature to begin with? No. I think everyone can agree on that.
So is Sony a stupid bitch? Yes. Well, actually you decide.
Me, I have lots of Sony gadgets, they really build stuff with quality in mind. I find Sony stuff to be generally better, more useful and more cost-effective than the overhyped Apple contestant in any category (just to use an example of a well respected brand against Sony). Still, Sony has this bad habit of trying to blowing customers away whenever they have the chance. They ALWAYS wait to release their stuff last, thus losing momentum and technical edge, they're always overpriced, they like to change rules like preventing modding after it was already allowed, etc. It's only too bad that they don't relax their corporate management and release the cool stuff already and let people have fun with their gadgets in peace.
Sorry about the long letter ;)
PS: Wanna know more about Sony's attitude towards customers? Check The Best Page in the Universe
PPS: More sony bullshit from this very forum:Sony accuses Beyonce of piracy

The PC beckons all of you, my friends!

Heh I meant that YOU made sense but sony's decision didn't

The real mistake was when IBM and Sony wouldn't release a real Cell based mainframe for Scientific use. Which forced them to buy PS3s instead.

If you want to blame anyone for this, blame that little prick who used it to exploit the system in such a manner that the pirating of games would have been possible. That's why it's been removed.

Fair enough, although I could've written a better sentence to be honest, hahaha.

Much more reasonable to simply blame Sony. They advertised this feature to help sell their product, and are now trying to arbitrarily take it away after people already paid. I expect there to be a class action over this, and I hope Sony gets bit hard by it. Also, as a little aside, it's looked like one of the main reasons Sony included this functionality was to try to dodge some import taxes (by claiming the PS3 as a general purpose computer rather than an entertainment device), but this didn't work out for them which resulted in them being much less keen on keeping the feature around.
Also, nobody who knows anything about Sony should be surprised by this at all. Best way to avoid being screwed over by this kind of thing: don't buy from companies with a history of dicking over their customers.