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"Deprecated" is a term most-used in software and programming. It applies to features that still exist in current versions of tools or programs and means those features will no longer be supported and will disappear at some point.
When a feature is "deprecated", it means it won't be available in future versions, and is no longer recommended. The warning usually comes quite a bit sooner than the next version that removes the feature.
eBay's message about contact info being deprecated should have been applied while the feature was still live, as a warning that it would soon be gone—and they should have said "this feature will soon be removed from the site". eBay's use of the message after the feature has been removed is a bit odd. The message should now read "This feature has been removed from the site."
However, the contact feature is available to programmers through eBay's API (programmer's interface) and programmers who use that API would see "deprecated" next to that feature in the API documentation and would know exactly what to expect. Thus, programmers would begin removing it from their own tools before the termination date. I assume the "deprecated" warning came out about a year ago (giving programmers a year to revise their tools) and eBay finally pulled the plug recently. The message looks a lot like a warning message that came straight from the API and was displayed on the screen (eBay tools use their own APIs too).
"Deprecated" is not to be confused with "depreciated". They are two different words, with somewhat similar meanings.
Depreciation lowers in value over time.
Deprecation, falling out of favor, means the feature is still usable until it is terminated.
"Deprecated" is a term most-used in software and programming. It applies to features that still exist in current versions of tools or programs and means those features will no longer be supported and will disappear at some point.
When a feature is "deprecated", it means it won't be available in future versions, and is no longer recommended. The warning usually comes quite a bit sooner than the next version that removes the feature.
eBay's message about contact info being deprecated should have been applied while the feature was still live, as a warning that it would soon be gone—and they should have said "this feature will soon be removed from the site". eBay's use of the message after the feature has been removed is a bit odd. The message should now read "This feature has been removed from the site."
However, the contact feature is available to programmers through eBay's API (programmer's interface) and programmers who use that API would see "deprecated" next to that feature in the API documentation and would know exactly what to expect. Thus, programmers would begin removing it from their own tools before the termination date. I assume the "deprecated" warning came out about a year ago (giving programmers a year to revise their tools) and eBay finally pulled the plug recently. The message looks a lot like a warning message that came straight from the API and was displayed on the screen (eBay tools use their own APIs too).
"Deprecated" is not to be confused with "depreciated". They are two different words, with somewhat similar meanings.
Depreciation lowers in value over time.
Deprecation, falling out of favor, means the feature is still usable until it is terminated.
