Preparing 3.4.6 release - Branch now in RTC mode

[Sidney Markowitz]

I already mentioned this in another thread, repeating it with a suitable 
Subject for clarity.

It looks like we will release version 3.4.6 to fix bug 7897 that is a 
regression introduced by the fix for bug 7822. The proposed fix will revert to 
the bug 7822 incorrect behavior, which is considered less important and can be 
addressed in trunk for the 4.0 series.

The 3.4 branch is now in code freeze, i.e. in RTC mode, other than the commits 
that are part of the release process by the release manager (me).

I'll proceed with building a 3.4.6-rc1 which we can vote on, rebuilding and 
releasing 3.4.6 as soon as we get a release candidate that passes the votes.

 Sidney