Q: Why is there no 2.7 "development" branch?
After the Linux kernel's 1.0 release in March 1994, the 1.1 branch was opened as an unstable "development" version, which led to a stable 1.2 release. The tradition of even numbered "stable" releases and odd-numbered "development" releases continued until the release of the 2.6 kernel in December 2003.
Because development is going faster than ever, and we have better tools.
Bitkeeper, git. OLS presentation: http://excess.org/article/2007/06/ottawa-linux-symposium-2007-day-2/ "Over the past two years approximately 4 patches per hour have been merged, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. 2,000 new lines of code are added and about 3,500 are modified or removed every day.Q: Why are the kernel developers so insistent on breaking up patches into small discrete chunks for inclusion?
http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/0707.1/1832.html http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/0707.1/1835.html http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/0707.1/1871.html Stability more important than features: http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/0707.1/1813.html