Re: Desktop user: Etch or the next testing?

On Mon, 2007-04-02 at 14:53 -0700, Glen Pfeiffer wrote:
---- Wei Chen wrote:
So I'd say that maybe Stable is really not for Desktop use.
Testing is the best choice because it is neither too dangerous
nor too old.

What do you think about adding a new release type maybe called
"current"? Then our release structure would look like this:

-------------
| Unstable |------
------------- |
| |
| |
----------- |
| Testing | |
----------- |
| |
-------------------- |
| | |
---------- -----------
| Stable | | Current |
---------- -----------

Current would get both security and feature updates. We could
advertise this as the perfect blend of stability and up-to-date
software. Immediately after a release, Current would lag behind
Testing so it would be more stable. Conversely, during the freeze
we might be able to pull some packages from Unstable.

I think the linear method in place now is the best, (as far as the three
distibution parts) but what about adding an alias like this:

We have the names: Sarge, Etch, Lenny
and aliases: stable, testing, sid

Why not have another alias called "desktop" (or whatever) that follows
testing with a delay after testing becomes stable?

So now: desktop=etch
After etch is released: desktop=etch
Once Lenny is relatively stable: desktop=lenny

I suggest this because others have suggested here several times that a
desktop user run stable for a while after it is released, and wait for
testing to become more stable before switching back to testing. I do
this myself: run testing/Etch now, when Etch is released I'll use it,
then later I will upgrade to testing/Lenny and follow it through the
next upgrade when it (Lenny) becomes stable.

There may be reasons not to do this (obvious ones I'm sure, that I'm
missing!), but I see it as a simple but effective way to help out the
Desktop users who like a balance between stability and up-to-date
packages, even through a freeze and distribution switch (migration or
whatever it's called).

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