There probably would have been more interest or excitement in the music forum. Anyway, to me The Pink Floyd ('the' was dropped after Syd left) is a totally different band than Pink Floyd without Sid. The Piper album was all Barrett's song writing in a style that fit the psychedelic mood of the time, but was a very personal mixture of experimentalism and playfulness. It was recorded in Abbey Road at about the same time as Sgt. Pepper and there are stories about the Beatles 'taking note' of what was going on 'in the other room'. Probably folklore, but Piper was hugely influencial when it came out. And of course Arnold Layne and See Emily Play had already been released. Barrett was probably not more of a drug addict then any other of his peers, but he did become the most famous LSD casualty in rock history. His solo albums are harrowing documents of his mental breakdown.
Pink Floyd never recovered and after some artistically uneven records they reinvented themselves as the heavy handed prog outfit they eventually became. But Syd's spirit hung around until Wish You Were Here, which was nothing less than a tribute to their 'lost' friend and collegue. After that it was Roger Waters who called all the shots and we know what he's like......