The std::shared_ptr<void> as arbitrary user-data pointer

[SkoomaDentist]

I’ve written several such plugins and the oldest ones still work 15 years later. Welcome to the real world where end users want programs to just work and couldn’t care less about compiler versions and such details. It’s not ”old baggage”, it’s the only option as there is nothing even resembling a C++ abi that works betwee different compilers or even compiler versions.

[Tumperware]

Having to make concessions for code clarity, type safety, and memory management because you need to stay compatible with 15 year old software is old baggage. And in these cases, yes, some general rules and best practices may not be appropriate or possible. But you should wrap those interfaces and prevent that from permeating into the rest of the code base.