From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Scott Randby Subject: Stable releases Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2015 13:18:35 -0400 Message-ID: <55CA2E6B.4060102@gmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Return-path: Received: from eggs.gnu.org ([2001:4830:134:3::10]:51399) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1ZPDCC-0007J2-VX for emacs-orgmode@gnu.org; Tue, 11 Aug 2015 13:18:41 -0400 Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1ZPDC9-00054a-Nu for emacs-orgmode@gnu.org; Tue, 11 Aug 2015 13:18:40 -0400 Received: from mail-io0-x233.google.com ([2607:f8b0:4001:c06::233]:34735) by eggs.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1ZPDC9-00054W-IO for emacs-orgmode@gnu.org; Tue, 11 Aug 2015 13:18:37 -0400 Received: by iodb91 with SMTP id b91so149384956iod.1 for ; Tue, 11 Aug 2015 10:18:37 -0700 (PDT) Received: from [192.168.1.109] (cpe-184-56-99-2.neo.res.rr.com. [184.56.99.2]) by smtp.gmail.com with ESMTPSA id y6sm1919879igl.17.2015.08.11.10.18.36 for (version=TLSv1.2 cipher=ECDHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256 bits=128/128); Tue, 11 Aug 2015 10:18:36 -0700 (PDT) List-Id: "General discussions about Org-mode." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: emacs-orgmode-bounces+geo-emacs-orgmode=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Sender: emacs-orgmode-bounces+geo-emacs-orgmode=m.gmane.org@gnu.org To: emacs-org list While I've used Org's development version in the past, I stopped doing that due to my failure to learn how to use git (no time) and other issues. Now, I only use the stable releases. But the latest 8.3 release doesn't seem so stable to me, so I'd like some clarification about what the Org maintainers mean by a stable release. Perhaps this is too vague, so let me explain a bit. Normally, I wait many months before upgrading Org to a new stable release, but when 8.3 was released, I upgraded right away (from 8.2.10) since I have a new machine on which I installed Emacs 24.5. I read through the release notes for anything that might give me problems and didn't see anything. When I started using 8.3, I discovered that the behavior of commented headlines had been changed---a change with which I disagree, a change I could not find in the release notes, and one which forces me to alter a huge number of files. It seems I missed the discussion about commented headlines on the mailing list. This is due to my limited knowledge of elisp and programming in general, a gap which makes it difficult for me to follow the more technical discussions on the mailing list. While it has been explained to me that the change is a feature, I consider it to be a serious bug since it is not backwards compatible. Another issue I had with 8.3 is the deletion of the org-latex-with-hyperref variable, something I could not find in the release notes (maybe I missed it). I understand that having Org insert \hypersetup{...} details is the most desirable situation, but I fail to see the harm in keeping org-latex-with-hyperref for those of us who needed it in the past. Yes, I figured out a fix, but this is a fix that forces me to stick with an outmoded way of doing things, and so I consider this deletion to be a bug. I do understand that all software has bugs, and that everyone working on Org is doing so voluntarily (thank you so much for your wonderful work). But I was very surprised to find that the evaluation of table formulas didn't work in 8.3.1. I could see something like this happening in the development version, but it is somewhat mysterious to me how such a bug could make its way into a stable release. I guess what I want to know, and maybe there is no answer, is how long should I wait before upgrading to a stable release? Org is by far the most important piece of software I use (I hate it when I can't use Org), and bugs (which I know can't be avoided) make it hard, even impossible, for me to get my real work done. If there is a way for me to minimize encountering bugs, I will appreciate a description of that way. Scott Randby