[Python-Dev] Re: Stability and change

[Jeremy Hylton]

>>>>> "GvR" == Guido van Rossum <guido@python.org> writes:

  >> Basically, we need unambigious rules about when we'll stop doing
  >> micro releases from a particular branch.  I think we should
  >> maintaince on
  >> 2.1 and 2.2, largely because 2.2 has so much experimental stuff.
  >> Once we get to 2.3, we can re-evaluate the situation and decide
  >> whether we want to continue maintaining 2.1.

  GvR> I think 2.1 is at the point where we only need to be reactive
  GvR> (e.g. fix reported core dumps).  The focus should be to keep
  GvR> 2.2 alive -- sooner or later it will gain a reputation of
  GvR> stability. :-) 

Let me put my Python/Zope user hat on for a moment.  I help maintain a
Zope cluster that runs Python 2.1.  We're not going to have another
Zope release that uses Python 2.2 any time soon.  When we do, it will
probably be Zope 3 and that will be hard for me to upgrade to.  So I
expect the most recent Python I'll be using for the next year will be
Python 2.1.  I'd really be grateful for bug fixes and maintenance on
this version as a result.

Put in a slightly more abstract way, Python 2.2 is a major release
with lots of new features.  I expect a lot of users will stick with
the last minor release that isn't a major release in disguise :-).  So
we'd serve them well be doing more maintenance on 2.1.

Also, I haven't yet found any response to /F's suggestion that the std
library always code to an earlier version of Python.  What do you
think of that?

Jeremy