kicad-developers team mailing list archive

[Jon Evans <jon@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I think the following scenarios are entirely possible if you use the Master
branch from ~now until it reaches feature completeness for V6 release:

1) Files may be corrupted permanently (so you would need to restore them
from a backup or earlier version if you use a version control system)
2) File formats may change, and then change again in an incompatible way
(if we decide that the first change was the wrong way).  You may have to
roll back your design to before the first change in this case.
3) You may have to manually edit files in a text editor to work around bugs
that show up

Of course, none of those are planned/desired, but I also think it's
impossible for us to guarantee that they won't happen.

My advice would be if you want to use the master branch for actual work:

1) Store your designs and custom libraries in Git repositories
2) Make sure to save and commit any changes before each time you install a
new build
3) Keep a close eye on the mailing list and GitLab so that if there is some
problem that can result in data loss, maybe you can find out about it
before you install a new build.
4) If you are actually going to use the output of KiCad (for example, order
a board), check it extra carefully.

Best,
Jon

On Thu, Jan 23, 2020 at 9:56 AM Mário Luzeiro <mrluzeiro@xxxxx> wrote:

> Hi Wayne,
>
> Thanks for the reply.
> That is fine for me, but my question is just on using the Master branch
> onwards.
>
> So if I only use Master branch, is the save data expected to be valid
> (during the development, using the Master branch) or corruption is expected
> due the development progress (eg: bugs) of this new formats?
>
> Mario
>
> ________________________________________
> From: Kicad-developers <kicad-developers-bounces+mrluzeiro=
> ua.pt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> on behalf of Wayne Stambaugh <
> stambaughw@xxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: 23 January 2020 14:26
> To: kicad-developers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Kicad-developers] Using Master branch / Nightly builds for
> work on new projects - Is it safe?
>
> Hi Mario,
>
> Once the new schematic and symbol library file format changes are
> implemented, going back to the 5.1 stable branch will not be possible.
> Initially there will be a short period where both file formats will be
> supported but that will be primarily for round robin testing to verify
> all current features are implemented correctly.  I will make an
> announcement once the current file formats are disable and the new file
> formats are the default.  At that point turning back will be impossible.
>  There are also some changes in the board file format that will prevent
> them from being opened in 5.1.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Wayne
>
> On 1/22/20 1:06 PM, Mário Luzeiro wrote:
> > I use KiCad master branch to work on project at home since years..
> > I know the risks but I think I had only a small issue once because of
> this.
> >
> > If I understood correctly, for the roadmap in progress, it is planned
> some file changes and so on..
> >
> > Is it safe to create new projects and working on it with the Master with
> the planned changes?
> > Will it need any special attention at some time in the future?
> > Any sensitive areas?
> >
> > I think this would be also useful for other users that are using nightly
> builds or on a similar situation than me.
> >
> > Mario
> > _______________________________________________
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> > Post to     : kicad-developers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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> >
>
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