On Thu, 9 Jan 2003 22:49:08 -0500, Wayne Smith <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>In addition to this, I download and study the template changes before
>making the change.  Many tailorings are trivial; many are not.  You may
>want to give your list owners a heads-up before or after the actual
>install.  You certainly want to have your revised site templates ready
>when you install the update, or at least understand the consequences of
>not having *your* template updates ready.  I try to give my high-profile
>-list owners a heads-up.

This is a good advice, but I would also point out that templates that are
working under 1.8d will still work under 1.8e, with extremely few, if any,
changes.  An example is if you go to the archives of this list:
 http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/lstsrv-l.html

This 'home' page for this list is still in 1.8d format and is unchanged
(actually hasn't changed for almost 4 years).  If you then click on 'Search
the archives' or any of the Monthly indexes you will go to the '2nd' level
pages which are all in the new 1.8e format.  I'll get around to changing
that page eventually, but for now it illustrates my point.

The point is that sites/lists with little/no customization will get the new
interface immediately after the upgrade.  Sites/lists with extensive
customization will still work as before, and changes can be introduced over
a sensible time frame, based on the work involved.  Of course you also may
not be able to take immediate advantage of some new features, but at least
you will not be left in a non-functional state and you need not fear that
you must make immediate and extensive modifications.