Things to do before the release
===============================

2 months before the release
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 * review dependencies, make sure configure.ac, the .spec and debian/control files in sync
 * think about bumping dependencies if necessary
 * if you bump dependencies, remove the warnings and workarounds for older versions to decruftify the code

1 month before the release
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 * check if you have all the hardware to test
 * if there's hardware missing, see about getting it
 * look for new features, add flowtests for them if necessary
 * start writing a test plan

2 weeks before the release
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 * warn about the upcoming code freeze (mailing list and personally)
 * ask translators for translation updates

11 days before the release
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 * finish up the test plan
 * make a list of things you will test on: distros and hardware
 * distribute flowtests among developers
 * distribute other test tasks
 * start thinking on a release name
 * verify that you have all new features listed, see if any have been added recently
 * recheck if the hardware is available, make sure people know you will need it

8 days before the release
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 * start the freeze (mailing list and personally)
 * start flowtesting
 * execute the rest of the tests
 * start looking at milestone bugs

3 days before the release
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 * commit new warnings about broken components
 * verify that you have no open bugs with the release milestone
 * (optional) wrap up prerelase packages
 * (optional) build PPA packages for the prerelase
 * (optional) build other packages, like RPMs or Debian .debs

1 day before the release
------------------------
 * write the release notes, new features summary, known issues
 * ask someone to review your English

RELEASE

1 day after the release
-----------------------
 * poke people responsible for distros interaction to push the new release into the distro
