On Sat, 16 May 2009 20:38:30 +0200
Robert Buchholz <rbu@gentoo.org> wrote:
> I like the fact that our versioning rules are a fixed subset of the
> sum of all our upstream's versioning rules. It provides a more
> consistent user experience.
>
> As a user, I know it's always "_rc" and never "-rc". Gentoo
> developers take care of mapping all upstream versions onto an
> easy-to-remember set of ebuild versions.

As a user, you don't need to worry. Since 1-rc1 and 1_rc1 would be
defined as equivalent, as a user you can use either and get the same
results. This is already how things work for existing equivalent but
not stringwise-equal versions.

> Bottom line: I see no gain for me as a developer, and a loss of
> consistency for users.

The only impact upon users is that the package manager will be more
likely to give them accurate output when showing versions.

-- 
Ciaran McCreesh