Release to the stores with RC version

[simon.schvartzman]

Hi, I wonder how "safe" is it to release an APP to the stores that was built with an RC LC version instead of a Stable Version.

Since there are a few RC versions in between the stable ones, some times it would be great to use the RC instead of wait for the stable but I would like to know if there is any risk with that approach?

As a matter of fact I did so with LC 9.0.4 rc 2 due to a mobilePickPhoto bug fix and now I'm seeing strange behavior on Android and I wonder if I should go back to 9.0.3

Many thanks for any advice.

[bogs]

Heya Simon,

That question is kind of like asking "how far is up".

An RC (release candidate) is typically considered about as stable as a release is, with what are considered minor changes only to be made before release. It is far more stable than a 'beta' release, but hasn't been 'finalized'.

Release candidate
A release candidate (RC), also known as "going silver", is a beta version with potential to be a final product, which is ready to release unless significant bugs emerge. In this stage of product stabilization, all product features have been designed, coded and tested through one or more beta cycles with no known showstopper-class bugs. A release is called code complete when the development team agrees that no entirely new source code will be added to this release. There could still be source code changes to fix defects, changes to documentation and data files, and peripheral code for test cases or utilities. Beta testers, if privately selected, will often be credited for using the release candidate as though it were a finished product. Beta testing is conducted in a client's or customer's location and to test the software from a user's perspective.

People will often use RC's for the same reason you state, that a particular bug fix isn't yet in the stable branch, however bug fixes in an of themselves can introduce unexpected side issues, or regressions, or any number of other issues.

I would point out that a bug fix in a stable release can have the same issues.

Ultimately, how 'safe' it is to release something depends on how thoroughly you test before you release, but I don't see it being any more dangerous to release after testing.

[simon.schvartzman]

Thanks bogs, I guess mine wasn't a wise question. Many thanks for taking your time to answer.

Regards

[bogs]

It isn't that it is wise or not, software development is murky at best. Look at how long Google leaves things in beta, but people use it as if it were production grade (which, for most intents and purposes, it is).

They are far from alone in that respect as well, which is where the term 'perpetual beta' comes from. For some companies, that is the new 'release quality' version of software.