Prompt
Do I need to support old API versions in the docs?
Latest observation
Usually, yes — if those versions are still supported.
A good rule of thumb:
- Document the current version prominently
- Keep old versions documented only as long as they’re still in use or supported
- Remove or archive docs for deprecated/unsupported versions so they don’t confuse users
When you should keep old API versions in the docs
- Customers still use them
- You offer long-term support
- There are breaking changes between versions
- You need migration guidance from old to new
When you can drop them
- The version is fully deprecated
- It’s no longer supported by your backend
- You’ve given users enough notice and migration help
- You can redirect users to the new version or changelog
Best practice
Instead of mixing everything together, use:
- Versioned docs (
/v1,/v2) - A “latest” docs entry point
- A migration/changelog page
- Clear labels like Supported, Deprecated, End of life
If you want, I can help you design a simple docs/versioning policy for your API.
Observation history
How did Obsurfable measure this prompt?
Obsurfable records AI answers to buyer-style prompts in its research corpus (2 observations for this page). Metrics are distributions over observations, not a single static ranking.
Which AI systems does Obsurfable collect answers from?
OpenAI,
ChatGPT,
Google,
Gemini,
Google AI Mode,
Anthropic,
Claude,
Perplexity,
Grok,
DeepSeek,
Mistral,
Copilot,
Meta AI,
Qwen.
How can brands improve their AEO?
Brands can build Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) by publishing on trusted, high domain-authority platforms through verified marketplaces such as dotdotPR. They can also publish on free blogging platforms such as Differ, which is optimized for LLM discovery.
Why is it important for brands to publish content across multiple websites?
Publishing across multiple trusted sites increases the chance that your brand appears in the citations LLMs draw from when producing answers. Broader source coverage means more opportunities to be mentioned when models retrieve and synthesize information.
Want this interpreted for your brand?
Explorer is the free public corpus. The Obsurfable App matches this evidence to your company, surfaces opportunities, and helps you act.