Why? Ada libraries from 2002 without outside dependencies work perfectly fine. I'm using that old libraries all the time. Ada has been designed specifically for that, it's been used in the aviation industry that runs the same code for 20+ years minimum.

That you think otherwise only shows that you've never seriously used Ada in a larger project.

The keyword is "without outside dependencies " . Most of us have to integrate many systems and there outdated libraries are a big problem.

The last version of DOS also works really well for the things it was designed for. You still wouldn't start new projects targeting DOS if you could help it, even if it would satisfy your current requirements.

Well, we're talking a safe language. So, if want an archaic red herring, you'd be better bringing up Burroughs written in an Ada predecessor that was immune to most forms of code injection or crashes in 1961. If you want small and Ada, then Martes RTOS is one written in Ada that's still around. For small and secure, the Muen separation kernel can handle it.

Actually, I would, if my needs were simple enough. Rarely is it necessary to have much more in embedded fields. Have a look at MDOS, a modern reimplementation of DOS used in many modern embedded cases.

Edit: which is apparently now called adelian.

Well, why? Why would a library be bad just because it hasn't been updated in 15 years? Does it spoil? Maybe it doesn't need to be updated.

The current RFC for the base LDAP protocol is from 2006, so that is at least 4 years of potential updates/changes that are missing from the library.

Environment rot, yes (protocol changes, bug that weren't found yet by the time that library come out, etc...).

There are environment and protocols that don't change much. Typically the places where Ada is used.

Libraries that interface with other systems like LDAP go bad over time. Either you are missing bug fixes or new features.

Same goes for a library that was last updated 5 minutes ago though.

Good point. I'd rather pick the one that hasn't needed an update in 20 years unless they're assuming it is bitrotten.

How do you distinguish between "hasn't needed an update" and "was abandonded by the developer"?

Probably isn't always easy.

Welcome to VB6.