Coming Soon: Stable D Releases!

[Adam Wilson]

On Mon, 16 Jul 2012 01:14:40 -0700, Jacob Carlborg <doob at me.com> wrote:

> On 2012-07-16 09:51, Adam Wilson wrote:
>> As a result of the D Versioning thread, we have decided to create a new
>> organization on Github called dlang-stable. This organization will be
>> responsible for maintaining stable releases of DMD, DRuntime, and  
>> Phobos.
>>
>> So what is a stable release?
>> A stable release is a complete build of DMD, DRuntime, and Phobos that
>> ONLY includes the latest bug-fixes and non-breaking enhancements to
>> existing features. It will not include, new features, breaking
>> enhancements, and any other code that the core development team may be
>> working on.
>>
>> How often will you release?
>> The goal of this project is that D is stable at all times. Therefore,
>> our primary method of release will simply be Git-HEAD. However, we will
>> also make available frequent packaged distributions for those who may be
>> unable to use Git-HEAD. While the exact release cadence is to be
>> determined, we expect it to be more frequent then the current release
>> schedule.
>>
>> What if a bug fix breaks my code?
>> We will still issue the fix. Fixing the broken behavior is more
>> important than allowing broken code to continue.
>>
>> How much will the core team be involved?
>> The idea behind this project is that the core team needs to focus on
>> developing D as fast as possible. However, we will coordinate with them
>> as necessary when it is time to pull in the latest work from the
>> development repositories and as any conflicts arise to between the two
>> codebases.
>>
>> Is this a fork of D?
>> No. Our goal is to follow the development of D perfectly. All the code
>> for the stable releases will be received from the primary repositories.
>> We will simply be cherry-picking the commits we want in the release.
>>
>> Will new features ever be merged from the primary repositories?
>> Yes. As new features mature, they will be pulled into the stable repos.
>> Precisely when this happens will be a mutual decision by all the
>> developers involved and the community at large.
>>
>> I have a bug fix ready to go. Who do I send the pull request to?
>> Please send all pull requests to the primary development repositories
>> (D-Programming-Language). From there we will incorporate your fixes as
>> they are merged into the primary repositories.
>>
>> I still want to hack on DMD/DRuntme/Phobos. Where do I point my local
>> repositories?
>> Then nothing will change for you. You can keep all your existing  
>> remotes.
>>
>> Who is developing this project?
>> For the moment, just myself, with support from Andrei. Although, it
>> would be much appreciated if a few others would step forward as release
>> maintainers to help with the bug fix merges and quality control. If you
>> are interested, I would love to hear from you. You can reply here, send
>> me an email, or contact me on GitHub (handle: LightBender).
>>
>> OK, I'm sold! When will the first Stable release be ready?
>> Not until after the official release of 2.060. We feel that it is best
>> to this project from a released build of DMD and from then on maintain
>> the stable versions. While it is technically feasible to go back and
>> start from 2.059, the number of bug fixes since then it would make it a
>> gargantuan task. In addition, this period allows us to build-up the
>> release team, synchronize with the core team, and polish our release
>> procedures. After 2.060 we will begin releasing stable versions of D
>>
>> Where can I find these stable releases?
>> The stable releases are located on GitHub at
>> https://github.com/dlang-stable
>> Once the packaged release become available you can expect to see them on
>> http://www.dlang.org/
>>
>> If you have any more questions or comments, please reply below and will
>> attempt to answer them to the best of my ability.
>>
>> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy D's new Stable releases!
>>
>
> Thanks for properly announcing this.
>
> Question: are the going to be release only from "dlang-stable" or from  
> the current repositories as well.

For the moment both. This is just an experimental project. And most  
projects with stable and development branches release from both. I see no  
reason not to continue releasing from DEV as well as STABLE. Pick your  
poison. :)

-- 
Adam Wilson
IRC: LightBender
Project Coordinator
The Horizon Project
http://www.thehorizonproject.org/