Compare/contrast with Variables API

Also see Variables API:#1017644: Compare/contrast with Libraries API

From libraries.module, lines 9-22

/**
 * Helper function to build paths to libraries.
 *
 * @param $name
 *   The machine name of a library to return the path for.
 * @param $base_path
 *   Whether to prefix the resulting path with base_path().
 *
 * @return
 *   The path to the specified library.
 *
 * @ingroup libraries
 */
function libraries_get_path($name, $base_path = FALSE) {

From vars.module, lines 162-170

  /**                                                                                              
   * Returns the list of the directories where library files are looked in.                        
   *                                                                                               
   * @param $library                                                                               
   *   The library to look for. This parameter will be used as directory name.                     
   * @return                                                                                       
   *   An array of directories where the library can be found.                                     
   */
  public function getLibraryPath($library, $unused = array()) {

An issue where I suggested using the Libraries API module to move third-party code from the module directory to the libraries directory, and the module author opted to use the Variables API module to accomplish the same function:

#1007454: Rudimentary libraries support

From the Libraries API project page:

This module introduces a common repository for libraries in sites/all/libraries resp. sites/<domain>/libraries for contributed modules.

From the Variables API project page:

allows finding the directory where a library has been installed (branch 2.x for Drupal 6 and 7)

Both the code and the description appear to be different implementations of the same goal.