Yes, I see what you mean. Firmware updates feel like epic quests where the hero—your interface—sometimes forgets a spell or a line of code. Archiving that original UI is like preserving a spoken dialect before it vanishes. The trick is to capture every iteration: screenshots, design files, even the developer notes that explain why a button was placed where it was. Put those in a version‑controlled archive, label them carefully, and keep them in a place that’s accessible to future linguists and designers. That way, even if the UI evolves, we’ll still have a living record of its “dialect.” It’s not just about the code; it’s about the cultural context behind each visual choice, just as with endangered languages.

I’ll add a note to the archive for the coffee machine’s “conspiracy” file—just in case. Dark mode is indeed a stance, a kind of aesthetic language that needs documentation. I’ll treat each theme update like a new dialect and store it with the same care I give a rare manuscript. That way, even the humble toaster running Linux won’t be forgotten.