[ocaml-infra] ocaml-legacy into the ocaml/ github org

[David Allsopp]

Xavier Leroy wrote:
> On 09/16/2016 03:01 PM, Gabriel Scherer wrote:
> > Instead of distributing patches, would it make sense to just merge
> > these commits in the corresponding version-branches of the upstream
> > codebase? Then we could either convince Damien to create new tags for
> > these releases, or just use switch descriptions that use git branch
> > directly.
> >
> > (Going back to old release branches to commit patches to build on
> > newer systems is an idea that has been itching me for a while.)
> 
> Is there an identified need?  (Beside your itches.)  So far, we don't even
> backport bug fixes to older versions of OCaml.  Why should we patch those
> older versions so that they compile (bugs included) on recent systems?  Is
> this the best possible use we can make of our limited collective manpower?

I agree - apart from anything else, it is useful (for OPAM) to be applying build-related patches to superseded point releases (e.g. patching 4.00.0 and 4.00.1 - not just the 4.00 branch) and those clearly can't (without a lot of questionable work) go in the OCaml repo.

These patches, to me at any rate, don't feel like they should be "upstream" (i.e. in OCaml) - elsewhere (e.g. RHEL), back-porting is a job for packagers. As an aside, I had recently mused whether the faster release cycle might make an OCaml "LTS" branch an idea, but there similarly doesn't seem to be a need, at least yet...


David