When I started Dev’il, I created an svk mirror of the Beast repository. I intended to continually merge changes from Beast but up till now I’ve been too busy implementing stuff. However, soon I will bite the bullet and merge recent Beast changes.

But that raises the question, How long to maintain compatibility with the Beast? I tried to remain as compatible with the Beast core as possible while implementing new features. For example, I continued to use unit tests despite that I always use RSpec in my apps. So, I’m considering breaking away from Beast after merging the most recent changes. I’m curious what folks think of this idea.

Is there any interest by the Beast team to merge the two projects into one?

Jamie, that’s a great question. I’ve been pretty lame about chatting up Rick on topics like this. I’ll do that. However, I think Beast should continue to be just a forum. It’s great for what it does and has been the launching pad for a number of specialized apps.

As great as Beast is, there are things that I may want to do differently, and that’s why I’m considering not trying to stay compatible with it. I modeled all of the interaction with pages and tickets off the existing forum features to attempt to create a more uniform experience. If I wish to diverge, I don’t want a cobbled-together user experience.

I don’t think this is a question that will be answered quickly. I’d like to get feedback from folks using Dev’il and see where that goes.

I am about to install Devil, so I haven’t actually looked a the code base. Is what you’ve done modular, or direct changes to Beast’s code-base?

PS I keep wanting to type “Dev’l” :-)

It’s not exactly modular, but not invasive either. I wanted to change as little as possible of Beast proper because I intended to merge upstream changes and I wanted to make my life easier. Also, I tried to stay consistent with Beast, so little of Beast needed changing.

I’m sure someone will come up with a much better name than Dev’il. :)

Any more thoughts on this topic after 4 months?

Has anyone tried putting the two back together with git? Wonder how far they have really diverged.