[Python-Dev] PEP 11: Dropping support for ten year old systems

["Martin v. Löwis"]

Am 06.12.2010 20:25, schrieb Terry Reedy:
> On 12/6/2010 4:08 AM, "Martin v. Löwis" wrote:
> 
>> For Windows and Solaris, it seems that some users continue to use the
>> system after the vendor stops producing patches, and dislike the
>> prospect of not having Python releases for it anymore. However, they
>> are in clear minority, so by our current policy for minority platforms
> 
> I quite suspect that XP will be in major use (more than say, current
> BSD) for some years after MS stops official support. Why rush to drop
> it?

What rush to drop it, specifically? It will be supported as long as
Microsoft provides patches, as per Nick's amendment. For Windows XP,
the extended lifecycle support (end of security patches) will be on
April 8, 2014. I wouldn't call that "rushing", at this point in time.
By our current release pace, Python 3.5 might be the first release
to not support XP anymore.

> Is there much XP specific stuff in the current xp/vista/7 code?

I don't know; I haven't investigated unsupporting XP yet. I'm concerned
about Windows 2000, at the moment.

> It seems to me that the rule should be something like "around 10 years
> or end of support, as modified by popularity, the burden of continued
> support, the availability of test machines, and the availability of
> people".

In my original posting, I proposed a clause where support could be
extended as long as an individual steps forward to provide that support.
So if XP remains popular by the time Microsoft stops providing patches
for it, some volunteer would have to step forward.

Regards,
Martin