>
> I wanted to share some thoughts from a user perspective on how we get
> features released sooner.
>
> When 5.0 was released, there were statements like *“5.1 will be released
> very soon with even more features.”* At conferences and presentations, we
> showcase all these new capabilities, which drives a lot of excitement—but
> it often takes a while before those features are available in a release.
>
> I really appreciate the stability of our releases and wouldn’t want to
> compromise that. Upgrading fleets takes time, and we don’t always jump on
> every new version immediately. That said, when I see features that help me,
> I adopt them quickly—at least for new deployments—to evaluate stability in
> our environment as we expand and upgrade.
>
> Right now, I’m working on handling repairs differently than before. With
> CEP-37 in truck, I’m questioning how long I should wait. Why spend time
> implementing something else if Cassandra will soon support this? If I have
> to wait until 6.0, I have no idea how long that will take. My options
> become:
>
> 1. Wait for the official release.
> 2. Build a temporary solution, knowing it’s short-lived.
> 3. Maintain an internal fork and backport the feature myself.
>
> At the moment, I’m in a better position to use an official release and
> report issues than maintain our own fork. Having access to the features I
> need gives me more incentive to upgrade, which makes adoption easier.
>
> Would introducing a 5.1 branch help get some new features out sooner? That
> would allow users like me to start taking advantage of them. Deciding when
> to move to 6.0 could then be part of the vote if additional features come
> along that need backporting.
>
> This whole discussion also makes me want to get more involved in the
> community. I’m not contributing code yet, but that’s definitely a goal for
> me. As I find more ways to share my time and experience, I’d like to be
> more vocal and engaged. It feels like a good way to ground myself and start
> giving back where I can.
>
