It does mean "alpha". Here are the definitions of "alpha", "beta" and
"final" Jess releases:

- alpha versions always add major features or change major features
added in prvious alphas. Little attention is paid to compatibility --
i.e., the public interface or syntax of a new feature may change
drastically between alpha releases, and this is the distinguishing
feature that makes it an alpha release.  There are known bugs or open
issues; these are listed in the release notes and / or FAQ. With the
exception of this specific list of open issues, the code passes the
full Jess test suite, which includes about 400 tests in 87 test
modules. All the examples in the manual are parsed out and included in
the test suite. There's at least one new test for each bug or issue,
although they may not pass yet.

- For beta versions, compatibility becomes an issue. Only minor
features are added, and changes try to preserve backward compatibility
with previous betas. Most of the new work is on resolving the bugs and
open issues collected during the alpha period. The test suite is the
same; some of the new tests pass.

- For final release versions, all tests pass at 100%, and the
interface doesn't change from the last beta.

People do actually use Jess alphas in production; you just have to
realize that code you write using the newest features may need
rewriting after the final release.


I think [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> 
> Does the "a" mean alpha? Just wondering if this is considered a
> production-ready release...
> 


---------------------------------------------------------
Ernest Friedman-Hill  
Distributed Systems Research        Phone: (925) 294-2154
Sandia National Labs                FAX:   (925) 294-2234
Org. 8920, MS 9012                  [EMAIL PROTECTED]
PO Box 969                  http://herzberg.ca.sandia.gov
Livermore, CA 94550

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