In the past, we received many questions from people about release dates for our open source software, most importantly JavaFXPorts and Gluon Scene Builder. Before today, there was no publicly available plan for when we would make available new releases for these projects. However, we understand the importance of having a predictable release schedule for many of our customers, and the wider community. We received many questions from people and companies that want to know when a new version will be released, or when a specific bug fix would be available. Some developers are able to circumvent this by building directly from the source code, and we commend this behavior. For others, they prefer to wait until a polished release is made available by us.
In order to address these different needs, we came up with the following:
- All bug fixes and features are immediately added to the open source repositories in bitbucket. Everyone can build based on this code. Developers can fork the repository, patch code, and create their own binary.
- Twice a year, Gluon will release supported versions of the open source software. These releases are based on the open source repositories, and contain all fixes and enhancements that have been added over the preceding 6 months.
- For Gluon Open Source Commercial Support customers, we create more frequent releases. Subscribers of the Supporter package get monthly releases, and Premium subscribers have access to daily builds.
With this schedule, we address both the individual developer who wants to be able to work with the latest code and build his own products; as well as companies that require predictability and support.