jon * wrote:
>
> on 4/10/00 1:24 AM, Stefano Mazzocchi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > do we really need that beta1? let's make it 1.1.1 and if problems come
> > out, change it to 1.1.2 etc.
> >
> > Man, revisioning in this project is _so_ weird. didn't we agree to
> > release early and often.
> >
> > Yeah, right...
>
> It is _so_ weird because we actually don't release early/release often...we
> follow an Apache release style...which is release quality software that
> doesn't crash people's machines and make them upgrade every week.
>
> Dude...Apache JServ is popular because it is so stable and just works...just
> like Apache does. I don't want to screw with that image by releasing code
> that doesn't work.
Unfortunately, even some core httpd people acknoledged that this is not
a "feature" of the Apache process but a bug. There is a _huge_
difference between once-a-week releases and twice-a-year releases.
Also, having buggy open source software helps! When you have a project
that "just works", nobody cares at working on it. No itches to scratch,
no unstable equilibrium that requires help.
So people stay away and the community simply fades out. Ok, there is
this Tomcat deal that was *created* to kill JServ, so we have a strange
situation here... but still what do you gain by releasing a 1.1.1b1?
1) people won't install it because it's beta
2) people want to move to tomcat anyway
3) then nobody appreciates the bugfixes
Instead, if we do 1.1.1
1) people install it, but they keep 1.1 just in case
2) if everything works, fine
3) if not and it's nasty, they get back to 1.1 and tell us the problem
4) if not and they can fix it, they fix it and we make a new release
This project because award winning for its quality and user base... but
not for its speed of evolution.
In fact, the evolution of Cocoon is impressive (in terms of user base)
not because of its quality but because we make a new release every
month. And if new bugs come out? Great, a new developer acquired.
Engineering software is easy, it's engineering a community that is hard.
And Jon, don't get me wrong: you taught me everything I know about
this... everything but release frequency. And I very humbly believe the
pros greatly outweight the cons. (yes, the cons of release early/often
exist!)
Anyway, I'm not going to fight for it, at this point in the history of
this project, it's pointless to argue further :)
--
Stefano Mazzocchi One must still have chaos in oneself to be
able to give birth to a dancing star.
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Friedrich Nietzsche
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