There is a difference between [[MarketingVersion]] and engineering approach to versioning, like [[Semantic versioning]]. Hear why:

===== Marketing Version =====

[[MarketingVersion]] is the one shown to end users and is associated with the whole product. It is a ''single label'' to help users understand and express what they are working with. Examples: ''Windows 10, Windows 11, Mac OS Sierra, Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu Jammy Jelly, Java 2, Java 11'', etc.

There is '''no logic''' in marketing versioning. It is purely driven by marketing and other '''human centric needs'''. Even using date based ''YYYY-MM-DD-dev'' versioning is [[good]] enough.

===== Engineering Version =====

Engineering versions serve other purpose: they ''allow code to verify'' if the [[version]]s of other components are good enough to work with. Usually a form of [[Semantic versioning]] is used for that. Often the system uses [[RangeDependencies]] to express '''intervals of compatibility'''.

Engineering versions are '''associated with components''' - not the whole product. There is usually way more such component [[version]]s inside of a single (marketed) product.

The engineering [[version]]s shall be ''incremented according to rules of compatibility'' to signal [[compatible]] as well as [[incompatible]] changes. That implies:
* the engineering version '''must be different'' than the marketing version
* there are '''many different''' engineering versions across the product as each component evolves differently and needs different versioning

== Summary ==

There is a difference between [[MarketingVersion]] and '''engineering version'''. Keep that in mind and make sure you disassociate these two categories as soon as possible. The last think [[good]] engineer wants is to explain to marketing department what [[Semantic versioning]] is!


[[Category:APIDesignPatterns:Evolution]] [[Category:APIDesignPatterns]]