@David There should be something within wordpress that informs the user that the plugin(s) they are using are out of date and do not work with their version of wordpress.

I read @your message to Ipstenu with considerable interest. Thank you for doing the work to survey users of your plugins, and for sharing the results.

There are 'reasons' why WordPress does not support Karen's desire to "arbitrarily" organize her photos. Any single such prospective solution will leave many/most prospective users dissatisfied, since folks have many different ideas & (often unrecognized) assumptions about what they want to achieve, in organizing pictures.

Likewise, there are 'reasons' why WordPress is not currently implementing an 'Out-of-date' notification for plugins, built-in. It's a trade-off that delivers certain good things, at the cost of various undesirable effects.

As your survey makes clear, huge numbers of folks using WordPress are running 'out-of-date' plugins. When notified about it, even by the developer himself, most choose to do nothing. Where does that leave you?

Would it be any different, for WP to notify users that their plugins are out-dated? You couldn't get them to update, just by informing them: how would it be any different for WP?

You (the plugin developer) could install "Death Code", to prevent a plugin from working after a certain date. When that date arrives, you will suddenly have many unhappy customers, and your days in business will probaby be brief.

WordPress can require that each plugin be properly credentialed, and refuse to run any that aren't 'approved'. Then, they would suffer the wrath of users, instead of you. ;)

David, your own research & data show clearly that simple "notification" that a plugin is out-dated, does not lead to up-dating. The customer sees that her out-of-date plugin is actually still doing what she installed it to do, and she sees that you are not going to hit her with a big stick ... and so she continues doing what she is doing, old plugin & all.

There are strong benefits for WordPress, that authoring plugins is something that can be done by people who would scarcely qualify as 'programmers', and certainly are not 'developers'. It enriches the WP platform, that in the repository are many plugin-codes that are 'hobby-grade', and could not be offered or supported by a 'proper' developer.

Could we get rid of the riff-raff plugin authors? Clear their crappy little codes out of the Extend repository? WordPress could make the decision to do that, and install the means to enforce new policies. Maybe one day they will go that way, but obviously they are currently accepting a certain amount of messy 'downside', for the fertile upside factors that come along with a relatively 'wide open', 'Come One, Come All', 'Wild West' environment.

And indeed, why should the WordPress core-code perform this update-notification service, when it is such a nicely-defined role for a Plugin? We have developers who seem to be doing a good job, authoring & maintaining plugins to provide this function, for those who want it. Please see eg, in the WordPress Extend plugin directory, Update Notifier.

There are several other notable plugin-maintenance plugins available (which I use), typically authored by high-quality plugin-authors, for any user who cares to be diligent about their installed plugins. It is not necessary for WordPress itself to do this.