[python-committers] [Python-Dev] next beta

["Martin v. Löwis"]

Anthony Baxter wrote:
> I am planning to offer a single file patch for 2.3 and 2.4. As far as
> one more 2.5 release, I don't think there's going to be many changes
> to the 2.5 branch between now and 2.6/3.0 final - although if there
> is, we'll obviously have to do another release.

I would like to establish a tradition where, after some final bug fix
release (e.g. for 2.5), further "mere" bug fixes are banned from the
maintenance branch (and I did revert several bug fixes from the 2.4
branch). Only security-relevant patches would be allowed to the branch.
>From such a branch, only source releases will be created, for a period
of five years.

So I would rather
- declare that the next 2.5 release will be the final one, and that
  any bug fixes that are not security fixes must be committed now.
  I know some Linux distributors have patches that they still want to
  see integrated.
- after some announcement of such an upcoming 2.5 release, create
  release candidate, release, documentation, and windows binaries.
- also create a 2.4 release, as a source-only release (i.e. no
  documentation update or windows binaries)
- leave 2.3 alone (it's more than 5 years since the initial 2.3
  release)

Realistically, I would schedule such a 2.5 release after 2.6 and 3.0
have been released (and indeed was planning to do so myself).

If you feel the urgency of doing something now, how about *only*
providing patches for 2.5 at the moment? ActiveState might integrate
them into ActivePython; system vendors can also pick them up
(if they haven't already).

Regards,
Martin