Re: Timescale issues

[Derek Simkowiak <dereks kd-dev com>]

> > 	It would make sense to contact the primary maintainers of the
> > major Linux distributions to see when their next releases are planned. 
> 
> There is very little chance that any of the commercial distributions
> will tell you release dates, [...]

	It doesn't need to be as straightforward as a specified date, but
more like a general agreement on how project timelines are going.  If
Redhat were to say, "We're planning for a new 7.0 release sometime middle
of 2000" then that could be one reason to lean towards skipping a 1.4
release.  But if they said, "We're planning on a 6.2 release in the next
couple of months" then that could lean us towards the 1.4-then-2.0 scheme.

	Of course, Redhat is but one vendor.  I'm assuming here that
Redhat Linux on the i386 platform represents the largest install base of
Gtk+.

	I guess my point is: the Linux vendors represent the "Gtk+
distribution channel".  While Gtk+ is always available for download, the
average Joe Gnome user won't want to upgrade his system until his Linux
vendor (be it Redhat or whomever) releases a version upgrade.

	It wouldn't make sense for 10 million CD's to ship with Gtk+ 1.2
on it the week before Gtk+ 2.0 is released.

> One consideration is that this probably means either delaying GNOME
> 2.0 by a few months, or not putting the new GTK in GNOME 2.0.

	There are plenty of options: Gnome 2.0 could come out using 
Gtk+ 1.2, and then a few weeks (months?) later Gnome 2.1 could come out
using Gtk+ 2.0 (and a bunch of Gnome-related bug fixes :).

	Alternatively, Gnome could release a "pre-2.0" version (called, I
don't know, 1.8 or something) and treat it as the final beta for 2.0.
Then, when Gtk+ 2.0 is ready, Gnome could release 2.0.

	That assumes the Gtk+ API would not change significantly with the
2.0 release.  Will the new Gtk+ Object system require an API change for
the widgets (or the GtkObject, for that matter)?


--Derek