> > 1.0 for software is like the 18th birthday for humans; it carries a > > symbolical value. > > I agree that many people take "1.0" as carrying a symbolical > value. But in reality, half of all software products are far > from usable at 1.0, and the other half has reached maturity > long before 1.0. As a matter of fact, this "1.0 = first > mature version" thing is an illusion.
1.0 doesn't mean mature, actually it has always meant buggy. However it does mean that the author has implemented all of the core features they originally set out to implement. So how do you know when you have implemented all the core features? Everybody knows the TODO list is always growing, for example Sam is now implementing sending mail through a SOCKS gateway. I guess only Sam can answer that question. To me it seems that Courier has had the core features of an MTA, and then some, for a long time. I tis well and truely past a 1.0 tag. Some authors want to wait until their baby is completely bug free before attaching a 1.0 tag. However that will result in one of two outcomes. Your software becomes bug free and you release it at 1.0, but nobody ever trusts a 1.0 release so its acceptance is slow. Your software remains 0.x because the new features you continually add bring about new bugs. BTW 2.0 is typically reserved for "Feature creap has made the code un-maintainable, so I am going to break everything with a rewrite. But it could end up being a better product once I fix everything that got broke". 3.0 is typically for "My competitor has released 2.0 so I better get the jump on them with a 3.0 release that corrects a typo in a help file". :-) ------------------------------------------------------- This SF.Net email is sponsored by OSTG. Have you noticed the changes on Linux.com, ITManagersJournal and NewsForge in the past few weeks? Now, one more big change to announce. We are now OSTG- Open Source Technology Group. Come see the changes on the new OSTG site. www.ostg.com _______________________________________________ courier-users mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/courier-users
