Next Release Planning

[Ryan Harper]

* Livnat Peer <lpeer at redhat.com> [2012-08-21 13:23]:
> On 21/08/12 17:01, Ryan Harper wrote:
> > * Dave Neary <dneary at redhat.com> [2012-08-21 08:42]:
> >>> I am not sure we must have new features in each release, a release of
> >>> bug fixes seems also reasonable to me. Why not keep it only time-based
> >>> release regardless of commitments for new features for the release.
> >>
> >> I like giving people good reasons to upgrade, but also good reasons
> >> to install the current version - and in terms of communication, if
> >> we say that 3.2 will be "3.1, with lots of bug fixes", and that it
> >> will be along in 3 months, why would anyone install 3.1? We've just
> >> said it's a buggy release that will soon be obsoleted anyway.
> >>
> >> IMHO, it's better to say "here's what 3.1 does well, here's what 3.2
> >> will be able to do that 3.1 doesn't". I'm not suggesting a
> >> revolution with every release, but one thing which is identifiable
> >> as "new in 3.2" doesn't seem like a lot to ask.
> > 
> > Definitely agree with this approach.  We always want something new for
> > the next release.  
> 
> I agree we want something new, the question is what is the release criteria.
> If I understand the above suggestion correctly If there are not enough
> new features we won't release in 3 months?
> I think this is a mistake because there are hundreds of bug fixes pushed
> into the repository and releasing a more stable version IMO has great value.

This is what a stable release stream is for.  QEMU maintains a stable
release until the next version is available.  We could produce a 3.1.1
release and keep that going until 3.2 comes out.

And if we don't have new features in 3 months, then it's probably too
short of a release cycle.  The last thing we want to do is introduce
*more* churn into engine deployments.  If we have a stable release, this
would make a longer cycle, like 6 months, more reasonable.

> 
> For example in Networking we fixed one feature and will probably add one
> small feature by November, but I know that networking in 3.1 release is
> very buggy while if you take latest from upstream it is dramatically
> better, regardless of the features there is a value for releasing in
> November.

definitely material for a stable release.


-- 
Ryan Harper
Software Engineer; Linux Technology Center
IBM Corp., Austin, Tx
ryanh at us.ibm.com