Backport: Document the release process

* admin/notes/versioning: Add information about RC releases.
* admin/release-process: Document the release process.
* admin/authors.el (authors-ignored-files):
* admin/README: Change FOR-RELEASE to release-process.
* CONTRIBUTE:
* admin/notes/bugtracker: Don't mention FOR-RELEASE.

(cherry picked from commit 9a4aa0f5945a03611ae29c516025dbd353bd26ab)

1 files changed, 52 insertions, 1 deletions

diff --git a/admin/release-process b/admin/release-process
index 286b90ea528..4a0890f3e4b 100644
--- a/admin/release-process
+++ b/admin/release-process
@@ -1,7 +1,51 @@
-Tasks needed before the next release.
+This document describes the release process used by GNU Emacs.
+
+* RELEASE CYCLE
+
+Each release cycle will be split into two periods.
+
+** Phase one: development
+
+The first phase of the release schedule is the "heads-down" working
+period for new features, on the `master' branch and several feature
+branches.
+
+** Phase two: bugfixes
+
+Shortly before this phase, Emacs developers will be devoted to
+figuring out what features to include in the next release and what
+features to defer to a later release.
+
+At the beginning of this phase, a release branch called "emacs-NN"
+("NN" represents the major version number of the new Emacs release)
+will be cut from `master'.
+
+This phase is spent fixing bugs and eliminating undocumented new
+features on the "emacs-NN" branch.
+
+In parallel to this phase, `master' can receive new features, to be
+released in the next release cycle.  From time to time, the master
+branches merges bugfix commits from the "emacs-NN" branch.
+
+* RELEASE-CRITICAL BUGS
+
+Emacs uses the "blocking bug(s)" feature of Debbugs for bugs need to
+be addressed in the next release.
+
+Currently, bug#19759 is the tracking bug for release of 25.1.  Say
+bug#123 needs to be fixed for Emacs 25.1.  Send a message to
+control@debbugs.gnu.org that says:
+
+   block 19759 by 123
+
+Change "block" to "unblock" to unblock the bug.
 
 * TO BE DONE SHORTLY BEFORE RELEASE
 
+** Make sure the Copyright date reflects the current year in the source
+files.  See `admin/notes/years' for information about maintaining
+copyright years for GNU Emacs.
+
 ** Make sure the necessary sources and scripts for any generated files
 are included in the source tarfile.  (They don't need to be installed,
 so eg admin/ is fine.)
@@ -275,6 +319,13 @@ tips.texi
 variables.texi
 windows.texi
 
+* OTHER INFORMATION
+
+For Emacs's versioning scheme, see `admin/notes/versioning'.
+
+For instructions to create pretest or release tarballs, announcements,
+etc., see `admin/make-tarball.txt'.
+
 
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