I am for not using libraries unless absolutely necessary. Dependencies limit portability and lifespan. I have 34 years in software development and would like to have at least 1 of my programs last longer than 3 years without being destroyed by erosion (change).
COM (Component Object Model), the answer 17 years ago, in theory great, in practice questionable, reusable components not really, I will only use the very basic components and only if I have to.
APIs and SDKs not much use. If I break down the number of lines of code that I actual use out of a library, the time I spend getting them to work vs. writing them, I think it’s a wash. I quit using SDKs completely the overhead is extreme.
Frameworks: Zend, Silverlight, WCF, .NET, the layered systems, yes they can speed initial development, but when I hit their limits, the time I spend fixing the cracks, just isn’t worth the effort. How old are they and are they impervious to erosion?
I have gone to JavaScript and HTML with only my libraries. I have stripped JavaScript down by using only the most common statement types. I hope in 10 years I can write something that will last.