Since version 3, TeX has used an idiosyncratic version numbering system, where updates have been indicated by adding an extra digit at the end of the decimal, so that the version number asymptotically approaches . This is a reflection of the fact that TeX is now very stable, and only minor updates are anticipated. The current version of TeX is 3.141592653; it was last updated in 2021. The design was frozen after version 3.0, and no new feature or fundamental change will be added, so all newer versions will contain only bug fixes. Even though Donald Knuth himself has suggested a few areas in which TeX could have been improved, he indicated that he firmly believes that having an unchanged system that will produce the same output now and in the future is more important than introducing new features. For this reason, he has stated that the "absolutely final change (to be made after my death)" will be to change the version number to , at which point all remaining bugs will become features.Knuth, Donald E. The future of TeX and METAFONT, NTG journal MAPS (1990), 489. Reprinted as chapter 30 of Digital Typography, p. 571. Likewise, versions of Metafont after 2.0 asymptotically approach (currently at 2.7182818), and a similar change will be applied after Knuth's death.
Since version 3, TeX has used an idiosyncratic version numbering system, where updates have been indicated by adding an extra digit at the end of the decimal so that the version number asymptotically approaches . This is a reflection of the fact that TeX is now very stable, and only minor updates are anticipated. The current version of TeX is 3.141592653; it was last updated in 2021 The design was frozen after version 3.0, and no new feature or fundamental change will be added, so all newer versions will contain only bug fixes. Even though Donald Knuth himself has suggested a few areas in which TeX could have been improved, he indicated that he firmly believes that having an unchanged system that will produce the same output now and in the future is more important than introducing new features. For this reason, he has stated that the "absolutely final change (to be made after my death)" will be to change the version number to , at which point all remaining bugs will become features.Knuth, Donald E. The future of TeX and METAFONT, NTG journal MAPS (1990), 489. Reprinted as chapter 30 of Digital Typography, p. 571. Likewise, versions of Metafont after 2.0 asymptotically approach (currently at 2.7182818), and a similar change will be applied after Knuth's death.