On Sat, 21 Dec 2024 at 07:50, Carlos Raúl Perasso via tz <tz@iana.org> wrote:
> But aren't we always asking for at least 6 months lead time for the > changes to propagate correctly? > Since September 2020 <https://github.com/eggert/tz/commit/241e6df0731f0e8d2a07a7ac42878f00086bd642>, our formal guidance has requested at least a year's notice. > I think the update should be out as soon as possible, given the March > change in the rules. > A main reason for our guidance on lead time is that there is always a balance between promulgating changes quickly and grouping several changes together in a single release. Both goals are meant to ease overall downstream burden, but in different ways. Since we can't predict the future, it just comes down to an ongoing series of judgement calls. Paraguay's change came to us at the height of the traditional "silly season". As is typical of said season when one particular change isn't immediately urgent, there were good reasons to wait at the time; namely, Brazil and Ukraine were simultaneously mulling changes that would have taken effect at similar or earlier times. They have since opted not to make those changes, so the balance has now shifted back toward cutting a release sooner. But there are still some smaller things pending: We haven't heard anything more about the proposed legislation in the Philippines since August; since it could have effects from 1 January, it may make sense to wait a few more days to see whether that re-materializes or not. A new IERS Bulletin C (expected not to introduce a leap second in June 2025) will also arrive in early January; all else equal, including that could buy a new release extra validity time ahead of likely DST discussions in the US early next year. And, of course, while I can't speak for Paul's personal schedule, one must remain mindful of folks' time as we enter the festive season: Releases invite more bug reports from a wider audience which can sometimes require another release on a quick turnaround. (You can help here by testing in advance!) These kinds of highly fluid reasons are why we don't commit to timelines for any specific release. But hopefully illustrating them (non-exhaustively) above demonstrates that our target is indeed "not much longer" and will help assuage concerns. -- Tim Parenti
