Since mainline is now in bugfixes only mode, and since port conversions have been being more troublesome than I had hoped, I think it makes sense to start a branch now to queue up port conversions until the next release cycle. I can undertake to do periodic mainline-to-branch merges (no more frequently than once a week) and in the interest of easy landing once the next cycle opens, perhaps patches going onto the branch should be reviewed in advance, using Stage 2 rules.
In addition, possibly we could get started on all the machine-independent improvements that were promised for after all ports were converted. The upside of this would be that said improvements would get implemented sooner, and people could see the benefits for themselves. The downside would be that it would break all unconverted ports on the branch, thus potentially making conversions harder, and it would mean that we *had* to get all ports converted before the branch could land. I'm interested in any and all thoughts on the topic. I'll be out of touch from now until Sunday, but my inbox is large. :) zw
