Linux 7.2 drops legacy support for DoubleTalk PC ISA speech synthesizer

Linux would ideally support every piece of technology ever created indefinitely. The challenge, however, is that maintaining this extensive code is resource-intensive, and often, no one benefits from it. As a result, developers spend significant effort keeping legacy hardware compatible with Linux, even if it is rarely or never used.

Occasionally, support for outdated hardware gets removed from the kernel, and it is interesting to see which technologies Linux supported over the years before being discontinued. One such example is the legacy RC Systems DoubleTalk PC ISA speech synthesizer card driver, introduced in 1991 and now being deprecated in Linux 7.2. Fortunately, this change does not affect users still relying on these cards.

According to Phoronix, a new update has been approved for the Linux 7.2 kernel that removes the driver specifically developed for the RC Systems DoubleTalk PC ISA speech synthesizer card. This hardware dates back 35 years, making the driver quite old.

Users can still operate similar hardware with alternative drivers. The patch’s changelog notes that the dtlk driver supported the RC Systems DoubleTalk PC ISA speech synthesizer card, but it had significant coding-style issues and only received minor maintenance updates throughout its history, dating back to Linux 2.6.12-rc2.

“The same hardware is supported by the ‘drivers/accessibility/speakup’ driver for screen reading, but it does not share code with this driver. Given these facts, the driver was likely unused. Removing it reduces future maintenance efforts,” the changelog read.

Anyone still using this ISA speech synthesizer can switch to a different driver designed for such devices. Since the dtlk driver has been maintained only sporadically since version 2.6, most current users likely no longer use it. Still, it is satisfying to see some old Linux legacy support finally phased out.