What’s with gcc-2.95? There must be a reason for it, plz tell me.
Thanks!
Binary compatibility. GCC 3 broke the C++ ABI, meaning that GCC3 binaries don’t run on a GCC2 system, and GCC2 binaries do not like being forced to run on a GCC3 system. You also can’t mix gcc2/gcc3 code in plugins, etc - note the two versions of RealPlayer for Linux to this day, gcc2 and gcc3.
Are GCC3’s advantages being considered for R2? Maybe running binaries in the form of Mac OS X’s “Classic” mode for legacy (4.5-5.0) BeOS apps? For that sake, forget GCC3, and just go with GCC4. 
Since R2 will break binary compatability anyway, I don’t see any reason why we won’t move to a newer version of gcc. By the time we get to that point, I expect gcc will at least be up to 4.1. Regardless of the version, I hope that the gcc people will finally stick with a stable C++ ABI and put an end to this ABI of the week trend they’ve been having lately. I’m not sure about the “classic” mode. I’m of the opinion that apps that aren’t maintained anymore should be replaced.
Right now i believe Haiku can be compiled by GCC 2.95 and GCC4.
It’s already been publicly announced that YT is doing a GCC4 port. Some of the guys have been working on making the tree build with both the 2.95.x and 4.x. I’d be surprised if after R1 (or sooner, for that matter) that someone doesn’t end up offering up images that were built with GCC4 and tossing BC out the window. While not official or anything, I’d say it’s a safe bet that R2 will go to GCC4.