[Ambassadors] The Future of release names

[Jukka Palander]

On Tue, 2012-05-15 at 07:54 -0600, Chris Neves wrote:
> So...
> Would you like to move to a "rolling release"?  Becuase that is what
> you are describing...
> 
> I like the idea of a rolling release like Debian but it also scares
> the crap out of me.  I'm one of those unlucky fellows that has issues
> with upgrades from time to time it.  Also, with a rolling release with
> no number or naming system would make it very tough for those that are
> coming in to the fold, as well as the sites that review distros.  
> 
> (my 2 cents)
> --
> Chris Neves
> chris.j.n at gmail.com
> 

I am not thinking completely rolling (=always updating) but the release
where you do not have to "care about the version".
Ie. Something between the current 1/2 month schedule and rolling.

Maybe it could be more like 1/2 year major update (like now) but still
somehow seamless. Like updates are right now.
For me updates are already part of the rolling mode! Why we update
anything else than critical stuff then if it is not partly rolling
already?

Basically we (as Fedora) are the _first_ so we shouldn't be scared about
the rolling releases that much. But then again but I do not like the
idea of major issues/features to be changing all the time.

What I mean is that by naming we should not think about releases. We
should just have Fedora and that's it. Rolling or not, it should be the
latest and for those who understands about numbers and versions it is
anyhow very clear what version they are using "inside".

I am seeking more the marketing strategy in here. One name and that's it
-EASY.
Inside "the system" we can have more versioning (we already have all the
kernel versions, software component versions etc.) for those who need to
understand them, it is clear anyway.

I am just thinking about the kernel versions and they are updating so
rapidly these days, so could we just see Fedora changing seamlessly. If
someone needs to know the "real" Fedora version, it could be derived
from the version of the kernel used (first K and the last K of that
Fedora release within the 1/2 years cycle or something). But if someone
decides to start using Fedora there should be no fences. Nothing to do
with versions -just download and start using.
With this 1/2 cycle we have some problems ->everyone is waiting for
another week and then.... (like me now -I have a customer who wants a
Fedora and I do not want to install it until "next week" when 17 is out
(and I DO NOT remember what the name was without referring the wiki!).

--
Jukka