[mythtv] New Install - 0.16 or CVS?

[Jesper Sörensen]

Jeff Thompson wrote:

> A common approach is to create a branch for a released version for 
> fixes (ie. release-0-16-fixes) and allow new development to continue 
> on the HEAD. True, this does cause additional work for the 
> developers/maintainers to ensure that you don't reintroduce bugs by 
> forgetting to merge changes from the fixes branch to the HEAD, but it 
> has the advantage that the most stable release of the product is 
> always available.


You are correct, it would be nice with a stable branch in CVS, but you 
are also correct in the fact that it would require "someone" to do the 
work. I don't know if you're volunteering to do it but personally I 
don't think it's that big of a problem and I would rather see that the 
developers spent their time on improving Myth or fixing more bugs 
(instead of fixing it twice, on different branches in CVS... ;-)

If there are serious bugs/problems with a release, Isaac would probably 
make an extra bugfix release (as was the case with 0.15.1), and you 
could always backport fixes on a case by case basis. Many patches posted 
on the dev list should apply cleanly to both CVS and the last stable 
release. If you can't do it yourself, I'm sure you could get some help 
if you ask nicely.

> I asked the original question regarding 0.16 vs CVS HEAD stability. 
> What I'd like, which I presume is what most mythtv users would like, 
> is the most stable version of mythtv. Due to the current CVS 
> structure, it would appear that I have to pick 0.16 or CVS HEAD.


My advice: if you're a new user, definitely go with 0.16 so you know 
that all dependencies are okay and you have a known baseline to start 
from. Once that's up and running you can start using CVS if there are 
some new features or bugfixes you need. The normal rules apply though: 
"Don't fix it if it ain't broken" or "If it ain't broken, fix it 'til it 
is" (take your pick) 8-)

I'm currently using a rather fresh CVS checkout, with some home made 
patches and some patches posted on the list that hasn't been committed 
yet. There are normally no problems with using CVS but if you decide to 
use it you really should keep up with the commits and dev lists. It's 
probably also a good idea to let the dust settle in CVS before you 
upgrade, so if you see massive amounts of commits it's probably a good 
idea to hold off on the upgrade for a few days until it stabilizes a 
bit. If you do it like that your Myth box should be very stable. It's 
not rocket science but rather common sense.

BTW, if you're going to play the upgrade game, please remember to do a 
database dump before using the new version. Sometimes there are schema 
changes that might cause you troubles if you need to back down to an 
earlier version.

Now go and have fun with the installation!