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Bug#363165: [PROPOSAL] drop version number from jar installations



On Tue, Apr 18, 2006 at 01:23:56AM +0200, Peter Eisentraut wrote:
[...]
> I propose that the requirement to add the upstream version number to
> the jar installation and the symlink from the non-versioned name be
> dropped.  Discussion on debian-java@l.d.o showed that no one really
> knows what this is supposed to be for, no one wanted to defend it, and
> it doesn't seem to have technical value.
[...]
Peter,
    I replied to that posting[0], and I don't think the discussion yielded 
a lack of support for using version numbers in .jar file names.  Since
nobody responded to the issues mentioned there, I cannot see why we should
implement this request.

What is the significant gain you propose by not having version numbers?
The version numbers are a lightweight (though imperfect) means of dealing
with the inevitable situation of incompatibilities between versions of an 
API.  For example, when a maintainer is packaging a Java API that depends
on the Jakarta Commons HTTPClient version 3.0, they at least can see that
the symlink commons-httpclient.jar points to commons-httpclient-2.0.2.jar
and have some insight as to why their package isn't behaving properly.

[0] - http://lists.debian.org/debian-java/2006/03/msg00078.html

-- 
Barry Hawkins
All Things Computed
site: www.alltc.com
weblog: www.yepthatsme.com

Registered Linux User #368650

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