Here is why I am suggesting this. I have been telling other IT tech friends about Haiku and a couple have given it a try. But they didn’t ask me what image to get so the got the Alpha. Well to say the least they were wondering what drugs i am on as of course the Alpha does not have the functionality/hardware support of the nightlies.
So why do the Devs not just call a cut off at say nightly 44242(current one as of this msg) and make a Alpha 3.5
It seems STUPID to have people install the current Alpha and then come on to the support forum to only be told DON’T USE the alpha go get yourself the newest nightly and then add additional packages(that have names but no info on what they are). I understand there 8 items left to get an R4(so far, more could get added) but I hate having to tell people that “oh don’t use the Alpha, search for the nightlies and use the newest one and oh by the way you have to add these optional items before you can really try Haiku out”
It’s tricky… “Releases” like an alpha release require a lot of extra time and effort. Another problem is, for example, someone could release a new alpha tomorrow and in a month a huge new set of video card support could be added, and we’d be in the same situation we’re in now: tell everyone to download the nightly builds.
In my opinion, the best solution is to be able to use the kick butt Haiku package manager. People would be able to download any relatively recent version of Haiku and update it easily to the latest “nightly” using the package manager.
Oh, come on, they’re you’re “tech friends”! Did you tell them why they need to type “installoptionalpackage -a WebPositive” in a terminal window after installing a nightly build? It makes perfect sense to a nerd (save on file size of nightlies).
…Anyway, what seems silly to me is that the “Download Alpha 3” logo is displayed so prominently on the home page with either a date saying how old it is (but it is on the Get Haiku page) or a link to the nightly builds.
We’ll need a stable release. A package manager isn’t going to make it possible to live on snapshots alone. I have stuff that’s waiting for a release - nothing anyone cares about, I’m sure, but I imagine I’m not the only one. But ideally, I’m waiting for a stable release branch. Not an alpha or beta release, a production release with, in theory, maintenance and everything. I don’t want “my users” (well, it could happen) to be forced to choose between my software and their video card, in a scenario where the latest snapshot adds support for the card but breaks my software.
It’s tricky… “Releases” like an alpha release require a lot of extra time and effort. Another problem is, for example, someone could release a new alpha tomorrow and in a month a huge new set of video card support could be added, and we’d be in the same situation we’re in now: tell everyone to download the nightly builds.
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If we wait for every new video card driver to be done before a new Alpha release is made, then Haiku is never going to get released. There will always be new video/audio/??? chips made, do a cutoff now and when the new stuff comes out then there can be a .6 release or maybe even the 4 release.
Again waiting for a package manager to be done before doing say a 3.5 release is not needed. Having a current Alpha with all current packages that are in Alpha 3 would be better. A package manager is going to take a while to code and implement, people who want to kick the tires and try Haiku are not going to want to wait for a package manager. They want to try it now and what the try should now should be better than Alpha 3 is right now.
I am a Haiku developer and I agree we need to get an Alpha 4 out soon. There are a few small bugs which should be fixed, and I personally would like to improve the wireless management before releasing the alpha, but that could probably wait.
A lot of people want the package management sorted out before the Beta release (which is up for debate), but we definitely don’t need it for another Alpha release.
You must remember that the Alpha/Beta releases are not time based! Haiku must reach a pre-determined milestone in order to release a new official version. For example, one of the main criterion of Alpha 1 was Haiku had to be self hosting. Until Haiku was able to compile itself, Haiku had a pre-alpha status.
One of the important milestones for Beta 1 is the new package manager. Until all the tickets designated for Beta 1 are closed, there will not be a Beta 1 release. The Alpha 4 milestone, unless I am mistaken, is an effort to release a solid, stable build that consolidates all the changes since Alpha 3.
Alpha 4 was proposed and discussed in the Development Mailing List almost six months ago. The Alpha 4 milestone was implemented shortly thereafter and can be found at http://dev.haiku-os.org/roadmap Because there are many tickets pertaining to the Beta 1 release are still open and unresolved, A new Alpha was needed.
Perhaps the best strategy is to continue the Alpha/Beta releases unchanged, but to release frequent “stable-testing” builds based on the nightly builds! Once the consensus is that a new “stable” build is needed, the Haiku git repository would be cloned and a new stable git repository would be available for stability and performance testing. Once all tickets for that release has been closed and a certain amount of time has elapsed, a new “stable-testing” image would be built!
Another idea to solve this issue is to provide a link to the nightlies on the front page right next to the alpha link. They would be taken to the warning page that tells them why they need to use installoptionalpackage.
As far as releasing frequent stable testing builds, the nightlies are already pretty stable, and plus, if someone reports a certain range of nightlies as unstable, they can be taken off the list.
As someone who is not a developer and only visits this site a few times per year, I assume added/renewed interest in the project thanks to a new release.
As frustrating as this may sound to developers, “outside” people only learn about Haiku progress when another release is out and websites etc. mention it…
PS: Just to make clear, I’m not looking for a rushed 3.5, just asking about the status of the Alpha 4 as planned.
