About release 5.0.6?

[Dennis Olson]

I have two questions actually. I'll preface them with the fact that I understand the vB5x was intended to be released with functionality in "waves" (if you will). That is, the initial release would have limited functionality as compared with 4x, but that each subsequent release of 5x would provide greater levels of functionality. That being said, my questions are:

1) Where can I see the proposed function-set of 5.0.6. I know that there are threads that detail functionality as proposed for a given release. I'd like to read that please.

2) Does anyone in JelSoft development/engineering know what release will have the same approximate feature-set as 4x? I paid for 5x when it first came out, and have been waiting patiently for whichever release will give me the approximate feature-set of 4x. PLEASE tell me what release that (theoretically) is supposed to be?

Oh, and one more:

3) At one point, a "style import" capability was supposed to become available for 4x styles to be imported to 5x styles. (Now, I know that there will be additional style components in 5x that are not present in 4x, and because of that, there would be "gaps".) IS THERE a planned import function? (It was originally slated to be in 5.0.5, but was tabled.) Can someone please tell me the status of this functionality?


Thanks!

[TLMD]

1.
There won't be a public vB 5.0.6 release. The next major release will be vB 5.1.0. You can have a look at the Tracker, if you want to see the changes that come with the next version.

2.
I don't think the main focus lies on 100% feature-parity with vB4, since vB5 is a different product. However, a lot of "old" features did return to vB5 since its initial release (vB 5.0.0). If you are missing features from vB4, which are not implemented yet and were not reported in the past, you can always make a feature request for vB5 in the Tracker.

3.
Do you know the JIRA for this? If yes, there you can see when it is planned to be included to vB5.

[Dennis Olson]

I don't know what a "JIRA" is. What I read in the past was that significant vb4 functionality had not been included at vb5 release-time, and that said functionality would be rolled-out in future releases. My question is very specific: Has that approximate functionality been rolled-out in the 5.0.5 release? Yes or no? If not, at what release-rev is it EXPECTED that the approximate equivalent feature-set will be available?

Now I'll go look at the Tracker.

Thanks.

[Mark.B]

Not all vB4 functionality is in vB5.
Not all vB4 functionality is going to be.
Quite a lot has already been added back, and the forthcoming 5.1.0 adds the CMS functionality back.

We can't give dates or version numbers for other features, nor can we confirm whether specific features will be added back at all. There are quite a few things in vB4 that are really not used any more, and those probably won't be added at all. Conversely vB5 has features that vB4 does not have and never will have.

vB5 is and always was intended to be a very different product from vB4, so precise feature parity won't ever exist.

[Dennis Olson]

I understand what you're saying Mark. I realize that some vb4 features will never be added back in. (I'd really like to know specifically WHICH features have been dropped though. It would be a very handy list to have.) I've been a vB customer since 2001. I know better than most the rules regarding release dates. However, historically, you folks HAVE been willing to talk about "scheduled features" for future release, as well as how many releases away those features might be. Note that this information was always given with the standard disclaimer that "this schedule and list are subject to change."

So I'll refine my question a bit. Here goes:

Of the vB4x features that WILL be carried over into vB5, what remain to be released, and what approximate release are they scheduled to be in? (Yes, "this is subject to change". Feel free to PM me this information if you can. I run one of the largest vB-baswed forums out there, and my membership will be asking these questions.

Thanks.

[Dennis Olson]

One more thing. Since as you say vB5 was "intended to be a very different product from vB4", can you tell me, in general terms, the vision for vB5 and why it was designed to be such a dramatic departure from previous releases? I really kind-of need to know this stuff in order to make informed choices as to how/when/if to proceed with the upgrade.

[Mark.B]

I'm afraid we can't provide any form of release date, approximate or otherwise. We never do. The only thing we know at the moment is that 5.1.0 with its CMS/article system isn't far away.

As for reasons behind vB5's general direction, these decisions are made by the relevant product teams and in common with most companies they won't make public their thinking behind them.

[Dennis Olson]

Are you having some kind of reading comprehension issue? Please re-read my post #5 and 6. Pass it on to someone higher on the food chain if necessary. I haven't asked for any release dates or company secrets. I really must insist on some kind of meaningful answers. If necessary, I'll log a service request and escalate as needed.

Thanks.

[Mark.B]

Hello;

I am sorry if my answers were not clear.

Post #5 requests information on release schedules - I have explained that we do not have any that we can provide. What information we do have is in the tracker, at the moment that mainly amounts to CMS-related features that are going into 5.1.0.
Post #5 also requests information on which features have been permanently dropped - again we have no further information; in some cases such decisions may not even have been finalised.
Post #6 requests information on the reasoning behind vB5's direction - I have explained that that internal company decisions are unlikely to be made public.

No-one "higher up the food chain" can give you any more information this. I apologise if I haven't provided the answers you wanted, however I have provided the only information that is available at this time.