[Feature Request] [Windows] Register version number

[Azazel8218 1]

Hi,

Eddie not registering its version number makes WinGet (which we all know is Microsoft's official package manager) want to reinstall its current version every time it checks for an update. A fix for this was requested here (nov 2021) and here (jan 2023) but still hasn't been implemented yet while it's such an easy fix.

Upon further inspection, it seems development on the Eddie client is really slow, as can be seen here and here. There's some development being done from time to time but a new stable version hasn't been released in years. It makes me want to consider an alternative as it indicates AirVPN may not have their priorities straight.

Can anyone weigh in here?

Edited ... by Azazel8218

[OpenSourcerer 1441]

Is this fix not implemented in the current Beta, too? I somewhat doubt it.

Actually, the versioning feels like Zen Versioning. That link summarizes it.

Quote

For this system to work, you must know how numbers work. That is about all, you need not to document anything, nor to enforce it by the code itself.

Once you identify your own software (i.e. software that you are working on), which should not be too difficult, you may consider a version format of X (VERSION). Bug fixes increment the VERSION by one, backward compatible API additions/changes increment the VERSION by one, and backward incompatible incompatible API changes increment the VERSION by one. In fact, anything increments the VERSION by one. A butterfly flapping wings on the other side of the earth may increment VERSION by one if you are not careful.

While incrementing by one is the common practice in Zenver, we acknowledge the needs of a developer and propose that if you are, in any given time, feeling a bit down, then you may consider bumping VERSION arbitrarily to feel better.

In former iterations of this specification, some users that major changes do not impose the sense of importance that they need to. To that, ZenVer's answer is incrementing: not by one, but by two (or perhaps more) depending on how major the change really is.

Our motivation? Two is larger than one.

That's how Eddie's versioning feels like to me: Totally unpredictable and arbitrary, geared towards freeing the dev from version management (which I can understand to some degree). Some version at some point in time, which may be Valve time, may be declared a stable, and this doesn't need to increment the minor version. It can happen dab smack in the middle of a number, like it happened with 2.21.8 (where 2.22.0 was another Beta, contrary to appearances). Coding is like a river, after all, where you flow and count the kilometers. Every kilometer is a version increment, and the rocks you hit (which you randomly hit, but they're few and far between) mark the stable releases.

This is Eddie's versioning scheme, and because this is Eddie's versioning scheme, ignore the talk about Alphas, Betas, RCs and Stables, just use the Experimental. The forums regularly recommend switching to it from the supposedly Stable release, anyway.

This does not apply to the AirVPN Suite [and Eddie Android edition, Staff], though. This one is coded by another coder who uses something akin to Semantic or Break Versioning. If there's an Alpha release, treat it as such – it really is software with experimental features.

[Azazel8218 1]

4 hours ago, OpenSourcerer said:

Is this fix not implemented in the current Beta, too? I somewhat doubt it.

I don't care in what Beta it's implemented and in what version and for how long it's being tested. The request is for a stable release and it should be in a stable release. Is releasing a Windows application up-to-par with the base requirements too much to ask for?
 

4 hours ago, OpenSourcerer said:

(...) just use the Experimental. The forums regularly recommend switching to it from the supposedly Stable release, anyway.

Is this seriously the general consensus here? What utter trash. Good to know the experimental version is considered safe for use but it's still labeled as experimental. And the experimental release is not available on WinGet so it still doesn't solve the problem!

Please don't view this as a personal attack OpenSourcerer, I very much appreciate your fast and detailed response. Seems like we're on the same cynical page here regarding AirVPN's development and releases of this application. Any idea on how we could initiate a change? Edited ... by Azazel8218

[OpenSourcerer 1441]

3 hours ago, Azazel8218 said:

Please don't view this as a personal attack OpenSourcerer, I very much appreciate your fast and detailed response. Seems like we're on the same cynical page here regarding AirVPN's development and releases of this application. Any idea on how we could initiate a change? 

For all the grievances about the versioning, the development is actually ongoing. Just remember that there's just one guy working on it. More frequent stable releases is a good feature request in my eyes. Bonus info: Staff read this thread.

Maybe, for a temporary workaround, winget should track the Experimental? Is this viable?