> This is amazing how you take every single opportunity to bash the new release > process, forgetting all pro arguments that have been brought in the last > discussions.
I'm not bashing it. I think the process is good. I'm saying the frequency is wrong and doesn't suit the needs of most of our users. > Let me write them down again in (hopefully) a more understandable way: You didn't state anything I wasn't aware of before, and yet, I still think that a yearly release cycle is roughly 2x too frequent from where we should be. Most users don't upgrade because they don't need the new features and can't be bothered to upgrade. There's no such thing as 100% downwards compatibility, and 5.5 will be no different in that sense from previous versions. Perhaps it'll be three nines instead of two nines (99.9% vs. 99%), but every keyword, every bug fix, every change in an error reporting level - can break apps and make an upgrade process non smooth. We're not going to be able to change people's perception. Frequent releases are less easy to manage from just about any point. Their one and only advantage is delivering features to the userbase more quickly, which begs the question whether they're eagerly waiting for such features. In terms of upgrades - you have to spend more time upgrading & testing. In terms of off-the-shelf-apps - you need to invest more in testing more versions. In terms of QA - fewer releases means less time spent in testing. > Instead of fighting it, what's about Zend talking about it to its so numerous > customers? For a change. Zend has nothing to do with it. We can't wave a magic wand and change people's perception, habits or preferences. Both our customers and the companies I get to meet don't view a yearly release cycle favorably (most of them - some do). > I have discussed with many WP devs (and the lead), they all agree that this > process is a good thing and will help WP to move forward. It does not mean they > will stop to support older versions but they will change the recommended > versions. Process != frequency. Our process is good, our frequency isn't. > No, we do not. 5.4 code runs under 5.5 smoothly. 5.3 code runs smoothly on 5.4 too (except for ancient code using features that have been deprecated for many many years). Incompats have been blown out of proportion - in the same way I can assure you the few incompats between 5.4 and 5.5 will be blown out of proportion. > Let me say it again, stop arguing and begin to promote and explain it to your > customers. I admire your self-confidence, you seem to have enough of it for a whole battalion of developers, but it's complete unwarranted in this case (as well as other cases in recent weeks). I think you're promoting a bad thing for PHP, not because our users are idiots or fail to understand the amazing advantages of a yearly release cycle - but because it's just bad. Zeev -- PHP Internals - PHP Runtime Development Mailing List To unsubscribe, visit: http://www.php.net/unsub.php
