[dragonwriter]

> Version numbers only appear to be folly because proper engineering discipline has not been applied when managing the stability and/or backwards-compatibility of shared interfaces.

Encoding intelligence (beyond, perhaps, simple sequence) in version numbers for software is fundamentally folly.

Encoding intelligence about compatibility in version numbers of APIs is only folly to the extent that "proper engineering discipline has not been applied when managing the stability and/or backwards-compatibility of shared interfaces."

Confusing what makes sense with software and what makes sense with APIs is as problematic as any other confusion of interface with implementation.

[binarycrusader]

I think we're saying the same things.

The purpose of libraries is generally to provide an API to one or more consumers.

I'm talking about versioning as applied to the library, as a representative of a set of interfaces provided.

Not as some sort of runtime detection mechanism.