KDE 3.x final freeze, KDE 4 module freeze

The KDE team announced that the 3.x branch is officially closed. There will be no further features or changes besides bug fixes. In the meantime, the KDE 4 module is frozen as well.

This is it: everything is now heading towards KDE 4. The book on KDE 3.x is now closed:

The Release Team has decided that it is time to close the books on KDE 3.5.

To quote coolo:
“No more features, no more string changes, no more docu changes….
Bug fixes are allowed and after some time we’ll do another maintenance
update 3.5.8 - e.g. in september.”

So bugfixes only from now on in the 3.5 branch. If the bugfix requires
a string change, you will need to coordinate that change with the translators.

Keep in mind that this does not touch the KDE-PIM releases - afaik they have their own schedules and even run an “enterprise” branch which will be updated with bug fixes for a long time.
I also hope that KDE 3.x will be updated for quite a long time in the future in case of security bugs because KDE 3.x will be used for the next months and even years by many, many people. But I think the KDE team will keep an eye on this baby.

But this freeze also means that everyone is now concentrating on KDE 4. As you know all basic technologies are now in shape for the application developers and it is time to take them up.

Of course many things wont make it into KDE 4.0 because even KDE developers are just humans and can only include so much new stuff into their programs. But that’s another story. I wonder when I should start using KDE 4. It really sounds as it becomes ready enough to be used by totally crazy people. Like I am.

Speaking about KDE 4: today is also scheduled for the KDE 4 module freeze:

Trunk is frozen for new or resurrected applications.

This also marks the day where all module maintainers have to announce if they are going to follow the official KDE release schedule or not - as an example, KDE-PIM does not follow the way. However, I doubt that any other module will leave the core. But you never know…
We should also soon see a list of all applications which will make it into KDE 4: the time now comes where all KDE 4.0 applications have to leave kdereview to enter their module. The Module Status Page already gives a first impression about some apps which might be dropped for the KDE 4.0 release.

However, don’t panic if your favourite application is among these: it still can find a place in KDE extragear (where several important apps like Amarok and K3B live) and it also might find its way back into the core with the next release like KDE 4.1.