On 03/30/2015 12:30 AM, Victor Stinner wrote:
So is it correct to use "alpha 4" in Misc/NEWS?

It's the release manager's responsibility to update the version number in Misc/NEWS.  As I finish up 3.5.0a3, I will be changing it to say "What's New in Python 3.5.0 alpha 4?".  And I will change the release number in patchlevel.h to say "3.5.0a3+".  I don't know why it is this way, but that's the way it is, and I assume there's a good reason for it.

Since you don't have the 3.5.0a3 changes yet, no, it's not correct for you to put "alpha 4" into Misc/NEWS.  Doing so would trip me up a little.

The release process is mostly automated, although there are manual steps where the RM is guided through the process.  Fixing up the heading in Misc/NEWS is one such manual step.  FWIW, I have in the past bungled a release so badly that I missed making this change.  I was happy to discover someone else had fixed it for me.  So I'm not saying "nobody but the RM should ever touch it".  But maybe you should wait a day or two after the release comes out before you start up your text editor.

Cheers,


/arry