MachineTradecraft
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Public version contract

MachineTradecraft.com is now versioned.

The current source candidate is version 1.0.1, release 2026-08-23-reproducible-1. The release history tracks compatibility, stable URLs and APIs, structured content, and SHA-256-bound root-deployment packages.

Read the current release Version policy
Current release

Reproducible package hardening

Makes root-deployment ZIPs byte-reproducible across clean extractions while preserving stable routes, APIs, content, discovery signals, and the dependency-free runtime contract.

  • Normalized runtime ZIP member timestamps instead of copying source filesystem mtimes.
  • Added independent same-source and clean-extraction rebuild proofs that require byte-identical archives and SHA-256 values.
  • Enforced deterministic member ordering, canonical Unix ZIP metadata, compression, bytes, modes, and repository-only exclusions.
  • Published compatible patch version 1.0.1 without changing canonical route or API contracts.

Release boundary: version metadata identifies the package; it does not claim that a local candidate is deployed. Production is authoritative only after a separately authorized deployment and fresh live verification.

Semantic versioning

Version numbers describe compatibility, not marketing size.

The public version follows MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH. Every packaged build also retains an immutable calendar-stamped release ID for diagnostics and archive checks.

Major

Increment for incompatible changes to established canonical routes, public API contracts, fixture guarantees, or other published behavior.

Example: removing or redefining a public API field without compatibility.

Minor

Increment for backward-compatible pages, laboratories, report collections, or capabilities that preserve existing public contracts.

Example: adding a new clean route or allowlisted lab.

Patch

Increment for compatible corrections, accessibility improvements, metadata refinements, defensive hardening, or presentation fixes.

Example: correcting structured data while preserving URLs and output contracts.
Discovery and citation

Stable content is easier to index, answer from, cite, and verify.

Canonical URLs are the durable public identifiers. Page titles, descriptions, visible headings, structured data, sitemap entries, and internal links must agree on the same subject and destination. A moved route requires a one-hop permanent redirect rather than a duplicate or soft replacement.

Answer engines and generative search systems receive the same crawlable HTML as people. MachineTradecraft.com therefore prioritizes answer-first definitions, explicit limitations, source-linked research, stable entities, meaningful internal links, and metadata that matches visible content. No special markup substitutes for useful, technically accessible pages.

The supplemental machine-readable site guide is maintained for clients that choose to use it, while canonical HTML, robots policy, XML sitemap, JSON-LD, and response headers remain the primary public signals.

Public history

Release record

Entries are newest first. Releases before 1.0.1 are retained by immutable release ID and labeled pre-version.

Version 1.0.1 Reproducible package hardening

2026-08-23-reproducible-1 ·

Makes root-deployment ZIPs byte-reproducible across clean extractions while preserving stable routes, APIs, content, discovery signals, and the dependency-free runtime contract.

  • Normalized runtime ZIP member timestamps instead of copying source filesystem mtimes.
  • Added independent same-source and clean-extraction rebuild proofs that require byte-identical archives and SHA-256 values.
  • Enforced deterministic member ordering, canonical Unix ZIP metadata, compression, bytes, modes, and repository-only exclusions.
  • Published compatible patch version 1.0.1 without changing canonical route or API contracts.
Version 1.0.0 Versioning and discovery baseline

2026-08-22-discovery-1 ·

Begins formal semantic versioning and strengthens crawl, entity, answer, and generative-search signals without changing the dependency-free runtime contract.

  • Published a canonical release-notes and version-history page.
  • Added version metadata to HTML, JSON-LD, PHP responses, APIs, and Apache headers.
  • Linked page entities explicitly in structured data and tightened discovery validation.
  • Added noindex response policy to utility JSON APIs while preserving crawlable HTML content.
  • Expanded the repository harness to verify technical SEO, answer-readiness, and generative-search fundamentals.
Pre-version Michael Kappel profile and contact

2026-08-22-profile-1 ·

Added the canonical professional profile/contact route and connected it to MikeKappel.com.

  • Added /michael-kappel/ with ProfilePage and Person structured data.
  • Integrated the profile into navigation, search, sitemap, and the machine-readable site guide.
Pre-version Dedicated laboratory release

2026-08-22-labs-1 ·

Expanded the site into 26 focused laboratories with 42 allowlisted actions and bounded local APIs.

  • Added the dedicated lab catalog, clean routes, local JSON actions, and multipart file inspection.
  • Preserved fixed-marker, no-external-effects safety boundaries.
Pre-version Cinematic public-site baseline

2026-08-21-cinematic-1 ·

Established the current responsive visual system, task-first homepage, local search, and asset-versioned dependency-free shell.

  • Introduced the current cinematic homepage and progressive-enhancement navigation.
  • Added content-derived asset hashes and the X-MT-Release diagnostic header.
VerificationTwo public headers
Use the semantic version to understand compatibility and the release ID to identify one exact build.
X-MT-Version: 1.0.1X-MT-Release: 2026-08-23-reproducible-1

The same values are exposed in HTML metadata, WebSite/WebPage JSON-LD, and the global footer. Runtime ZIPs are separately bound to a SHA-256 sidecar by the repository harness.

Versioning FAQ

Questions about releases and compatibility

What is the difference between the site version and the release ID?

The semantic version communicates compatibility: major for breaking public contracts, minor for backward-compatible features, and patch for compatible corrections. The calendar-stamped release ID identifies one exact packaged release.

Will published MachineTradecraft.com URLs remain stable?

Yes. Existing canonical routes should remain stable. An intentional move requires a one-hop permanent redirect, updated internal links and sitemap entries, and validation before release.

How can a client confirm which release it received?

Read the X-MT-Version and X-MT-Release response headers. The same values appear in HTML metadata, structured data, the footer, and this page.