Date: Wed, 4 Jun 2014 14:33:16 -0500 From: Eric van Gyzen <eric@vangyzen.net> To: "freebsd-hackers@freebsd.org" <freebsd-hackers@freebsd.org> Subject: "Legacy" Release Terminology [was: There is currently no usable release of FreeBSD.] Message-ID: <538F747C.7010901@vangyzen.net> In-Reply-To: <538F70A8.4060904@FreeBSD.org> References: <alpine.BSF.2.00.1406040944570.2120@kozubik.com> <332D72DF-2225-40E2-B246-0786181AAB51@tony.li> <538F5FB5.9060008@FreeBSD.org> <662C363E-A16E-48B2-9FBF-D2D4AB81733C@dataix.net> <538F70A8.4060904@FreeBSD.org>
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On 06/04/2014 14:16, Jonathan Anderson wrote:
> Jason Hellenthal wrote:
>> Legacy . . .
>> /adjective/
>> COMPUTING
>> **
>>
>> 1.
>> *1*.
>> denoting software or hardware that has been superseded but is
>> difficult to replace because of its wide use.
>>
>>
>> What about that says unsupported ?
>
>
> Sure, you're right about the dictionary definition, but in some usage
> (including among certain folks who build, package and use a popular
> open-source alternative to FreeBSD), people treat the word "legacy" as
> synonymous with "obsolete". Perhaps they shouldn't, but many do, and
> the original poster is trying to justify to the compliance-happy parts
> of an organisation why it's ok to base a company's future on something
> labelled as ${perceived-to-be-negative adjective}.
>
> So, rather than use words that are unclear (people in this
> conversation seem to have different perspectives on them), I suggest
> that we use unambiguous language: "branch X will be supported until
> x/y/zz".
I have long thought that "Legacy", as used on the front page of
www.freebsd.org, was misleading. Please, let's change it. Let's call
8.4, 9.2, and 10.0 all "Production", because that is what they are. The
numbers imply most of the relevant distinctions (features, maturity,
longevity, etc.).
Independently, specifying branch support dates would also be helpful,
but let's at least improve the "legacy" terminology.
Eric
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