FWIW, the boosts are typically in their own section that you can skip if you like. I put chapter markers in every episode to make it easy for you.
Those boosts are helping to keep the network solvent by diversifying income. As advertisers are getting more skittish, income needs to come from somewhere. None of us can afford to work for free, and there’s already one show that would be completely dead without boosts.
They also function similarly to feedback. Yes, there’s plenty of shenanigans, but Linux Unplugged has always been about creating an entertaining talk show kind of vibe. Linux Action News is more the serious one. Unfortunately, that’s on hiatus because of lack of sponsors.
Chris does try to tailor the boost segments per-show so they fit with the theme. Self Hosted, for example, keeps boosts more topical on average. It’s also worth mentioning that we haven’t removed email feedback - this isn’t pay-to-play.
Source: I edit Linux Unplugged, Self Hosted, Office Hours, and Coder Radio.
So… this is only partially correct IMHO.
Yes, it will continue to be expensive for the studios that push the envelope. However, as those studios continue to invest large amounts of cash, the smaller studios are continually getting access to better and better tools because of it. That means that a small studio can create something that is not quite-as-good as the major studios, but still very competitive, and for significantly cheaper.
As technology progresses, last-year’s tech will always fall in price.
As to the point of enjoying Super Nintendo and DOS games, sure. Much of that style has returned in the form of pixel art games and what have you. But the conservative viewpoint of ‘8-bit was good enough in my day, why improve on it’ is just short-sighted in my opinion. Why keep pumping out Atari-grade stuff when so much more is possible? Why not advance and improve?