HelpMaster by the numbers - what does the version number mean?

v11.0.1.234

What's in a number?

HelpMaster is written in Microsoft .net programming languages, which means when it's compiled, the file version ends up being a 4 digit number that corresponds to Major.Minor.Revision.Build

Think of these 4 number as

Major release # .  Feature release #  .  Maintenance release #  .  Compile number #

The first number will always be the major version of the software.  This is the big marketing number, and the plan is to increment this number once a year.  A major version includes major new features, and this is the best version of HelpMaster to have.  Only the last 2 major versions of HelpMaster receive technical and developer support.  See Support Terms and Conditions for further explanation of this.

The second number will represent feature version of HelpMaster that include new features.  Throughout the year following a major release (first digit), the goal is to release several "point" releases that include new functionality.  Note that this type of release is not just a bug fix, or maintenance release – it identifies a version of HelpMaster that has something new to offer, or an improvement to an existing feature.  This second number will always be incremented by one for each feature release, starting at 0.  This "feature" number is reset to zero when a new major version is released. (In this example, the next major release will be v12.0)

The third number is a maintenance release number.  This is a "bug fix".  A maintenance release is a version that is specifically released to address some sort of problem, or bug.  This type of release does not include anything new – it’s simply a fix for an existing feature release.  Like the second number (feature release), this number will start at zero and increment by 1 each time.  Therefore, v11.2.5 indicates the fifth bug fix for the second feature release of version 11.  This number is reset to zero for each new feature release.

The fourth number is a developer thing - it's the compile number, and you should never have to even think about this one.  It’s the compile number that is automatically allocated by our automatic build process (see www.finalbuilder.com), and it relates to the total number of times that the full compile process has run for any version within the major version scope of the software.  Therefore, v11.1.0.252 means that v11 has been compiled a total of 252 times throughout its major, feature and maintenance builds.  This number is reset to zero for each major release.

Which version is best for me?

The basic rule of thumb is this....

Try to keep up with the highest number of HelpMaster you can.  This is the latest version and has all new new features.  Please see the Upgrading FAQ for details about keeping up to date.

If you can't keep up with the latest feature version, try to keep up with the latest maintenance version for whatever version you're running.  This is the 3rd number - the bug fixes.  The higher the maintenance number, the more stable, and the more refined this version is within it's major/feature number family. 

You can always check the latest HelpMaster version available from the Support Home page, or use the Help > Check for Updates menu within the Desktop edition of HelpMaster. 

If all of this number talk has just confused you, don’t worry about it too much.  At the end of the day, when a HelpMaster tech support asks you, “What version of the software are you running?”, All we need to know are those first 3 digits - something like “11.0.170”.  To determine this information, simply use the “Help > About” menu.