Messages in this thread | | | Date | Thu, 03 Mar 2005 02:52:21 -0500 | From | Jeff Garzik <> | Subject | Re: RFD: Kernel release numbering |
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David S. Miller wrote: > On Wed, 02 Mar 2005 23:46:22 -0500 > Jeff Garzik <jgarzik@pobox.com> wrote: > > >>If Linus/DaveM really don't like -pre/-rc naming, I think 2.6.x.y is >>preferable to even/odd. > > > All of these arguments are circular. If people think that even/odd > will devalue odd releases, guess what 2.6.x.y will do? By that line > of reasoning nobody will test 2.6.x just the same as they aren't > testing 2.6.x-rc* right now.
even/odd means that certain releases (even ones) are more magical than others. That's weird, since users aren't used to that sort of thing in any other project.
2.6.x.y and 2.6.x-rc [where rc == serious bugfixes only!] are understandable to users, because they have seen that sort of thing before.
Users _aren't_ fooled by naming games. The current 2.6-rc proves that.
> I think they will test the odd releases, because as a real release > they will get slashdot/lwn.net/etc. announcements. > > That's one of the major things the -rc's don't get. Maybe it gets > a reference in lwn.net's weekly kernel article, but mostly kernel > geeks read those and that's not who we want testing -rc's (such > geeks already are doing so).
LWN, Slashdot and others will not be fooled though :) They will note that release 2.6.<odd> is not a real release.
> It has to be a "real" release. That does have an impact. However, > I am ambivalent about how to make them real. Even/odd, 2.6.x.y, > either is fine with me.
2.6.x.y has a very real engineering benefit: it becomes a stable release branch. That will encourage even more users to test it, over and above a simple release naming change.
Users have been clamoring for a stable release branch in any case, as you see from comments about Alan's -ac and an LKML user's -as kernels.
Jeff
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