Re: [eclipse-dev] Re: [e4-dev] Eclipse Project 4.0 Release

[Brian de Alwis <briandealwis@xxxxxxxxx>]

On 28-Apr-2010, at 1:59 PM, Mike Wilson wrote:
> Let's be absolutely clear about this: It is *not* a "preview" nor is it a "beta". This is a real release, which should satisfy the needs of anyone who was previously running Eclipse "classic". 

I'm confused.  To me, that implies that this release will be *the* 4.0 SDK, and that the July 2011 release train be shipping with 4.0.1 or something later.  If so, then see my comments below.  If this isn't going to be *the* 4.0 SDK, or rather if the real 4.0 will be released later, then I think this *should* be marked as a preview.

On 28-Apr-2010, at 2:18 PM, Jeff McAffer wrote:
> I'm not sure I understand the problems with "beta". [...]

Me neither.  The Microsoft's Windows 7 beta was very popularly received.  Apple seeds  several rounds of iPhoneOS betas to its developers.  It means that developers release their apps simultaneously, and it becomes a bigger deal.  Look at how Apple is handling iPhoneOS 4.0 — they're releasing betas now so that developers can be 4.0 ready and show off the new whizzy features.


My $0.02: I think we should be maximizing the opportunity of "Eclipse 4.0".  It shouldn't be used for a developers-only please-test-your-tools release.  e4 is very cool, especially for RCP apps; SFS looks nifty too.  But let's be honest, most of the other components in Eclipse 4.0 will be the same in Helios.

To my mind, "Eclipse 4.0" should be a thunderous release with tons of improvements, and should be revealed in July 2011.  The other projects will have digested the new release and will demonstrate the stunning features of Eclipse 4.0.  "4.0" should merit a big ecosystem-wide party.

We should be looking to release e4 1.0. The messaging should be: plugin developers, move onto e4 R1.0 as this will be the foundation of the Eclipse 4.0 SDK.  If "e4 R1.0" isn't good enough, then this release should definitely be "Eclipse 4.0 Preview" or "Early Adopters".

Brian.