This post has been republished via RSS; it originally appeared at: Microsoft Developer Blogs.
There are several ways to evaluate packages on NuGet.org, such as download statistics, update frequency, owner reputation, GitHub Usage, and more.
Today, we're excited to announce that you can now view dependent packages in the Used By section, yet another major improvement to the package evaluation experience!
What's new in Used By?
The Used By section is an evolution of the GitHub Usage section that surfaces the top dependent NuGet.org packages in addition to the top dependent GitHub repos. It provides a fuller, richer picture of who is using a given package and how they're using it.
What counts as a "dependent package?"
The Used By tab will show the top 5 packages that depend on any version of the package of interest in their latest stable version.
This ensures that Used By always shows an up-to-date list of packages that currently trust and endorse the package of interest. If a dependent package decides to stop using on the package of interest in their latest stable release, then they will be removed from that package's Used By list.
To get a better idea of how this works, check out the following example from the Evaluating packages docs:
| Package A versions | Package A is listed as a dependent of Package B? |
|---|---|
| v1.0.0 v1.1.0 (latest stable) --> Package B v1.2.0-preview |
TRUE, latest stable version depends on Package B |
| v1.0.0 --> Package B v1.1.0 (latest stable) v1.2.0-preview |
FALSE, latest stable version does not depend on Package B |
| v1.0.0 --> Package B v1.1.0 (latest stable) v1.2.0-preview --> Package B |
FALSE, latest stable version does not depend on Package B |
What's next?
The next iteration of the Used By section will include access to a full list of all dependent packages and GitHub repos. A full list of dependents will futher help package consumers evaluate packages as well as provide a wider range of usage examples to learn from. It may even help you find a usage example in a project that's a lot like yours! Not to mention, package authors will be able to better inform product decisions by tracking who uses their package and how the package is being used.
We want to hear your feedback!
We want NuGet to meet the evolving needs of our community. Post a comment or use the GitHub issue tracking this experience to provide feedback, or ask questions about this feature.
For more general NuGet feedback and suggestions:
- Check out our documentation on submitting bugs and suggestions.
- Schedule a time to talk to NuGet.
- Reach out to us on Twitter – mention @nuget in your tweets.