Re: [libreoffice-marketing] 3.4.2 - "will target enterprise deployments" - is limiting the market?

On Mon, Jul 4, 2011 at 6:48 AM, webmaster for Kracked Press Productions <
webmaster@krackedpress.com> wrote:

> The LibreOffice download page has the following statement:
> <quote>
> Safely for production need by most users - LibreOffice 3.4.2, available at
> the end of July, will target enterprise deployments.
> <unquote>
>
> ...
> So the question really is, once 3.4.2 comes out, should I/we start
> promoting it to businesses or continue promoting the 3.3.x line?


Thanks for bringing this up, Tim.  The best explanation, for us and the
larger community is the 3.4.1 blog
announcement<http://blog.documentfoundation.org/2011/07/01/libreoffice-3-4-1-provides-stable-new-features-for-every-user/>by
Italo.

Large enterprises deploying LibreOffice on desktop PCs, are still
> recommended to deploy LibreOffice 3.3.3, which has been tested over several
> months by thousands of people worldwide, and are encouraged to call on
> professional support services. LibreOffice 3.4.2, available at the end of
> July, will target enterprise deployments.

I think, though, that we need to refine messages such as these further;
specifically for simplicity and clarity.  The reason I believe this is
necessary is that enough writers are picking up on the wrong message that we
should double-check how we are messaging.  Some sample headlines:

LibreOffice 3.4 nears enterprise-ready
state<http://www.thinq.co.uk/2011/7/1/libreoffice-34-nears-enterprise-ready-state/>

LibreOffice 3.4.1 fixes bugs, still not ready for
eterprises<http://www.betanews.com/article/LibreOffice-341-fixes-bugs-still-not-ready-for-enterprises/1309528388>

LibreOffice 3.4.1 released, not for enterprises
yet<http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/LibreOffice-3-4-1-released-not-for-enterprises-yet-1271466.html>

In re-reading the announcement, yet again, it appears to me to be actually
three announcements:

   - TDF is now using a "time-based" release schedule for LibO
   - LibO will now have two versions released at all times: early adopter
   and institutional
   - Early adopter version 3.4.1 is now available

This might explain some of the muddled interpretations that we are seeing.
The first announcement is, arguably the biggest.  If I am responsible for
any institution of any size, it is inarguable:  TDF is now moving to the
same release model as Ubuntu: Frequent calendar-driven versions,
interspersed with regular LTS releases.

This is a big message and it really should stand on its own.  (And for any
of us who've been following the Mozilla Foundation's development cycle
announcements, this should be a wake-up call.)  What's missing, then, in
this first announcement is the calendaring for future releases.

The second announcement is dependent on the first but, still, should stand
on its own:  One track for the "fast & furious" and one track for the CIO.
There's a lot of feature-benefit which can be fleshed out here.

The third & last announcement is the type which should reinforce the
previous two:  "Here's the 'cutting edge.'  Here's the brief
feature-benefit.  As you can see, this release reinforces our dual-release
strategy and hints at soon-to-come institutional functionality."

If I've misread things, apologies.

Regards,
-Craig

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