Update RELEASE_ISSUE_TEMPLATE.md

docs/RELEASE_ISSUE_TEMPLATE.md

@@ -4,15 +4,79 @@
 
 We're happy to announce go-ipfs X.Y.Z, bla bla...
 
-## Highlights
+## 🗺 What's left for release
+
+<List of items with PRs and/or Issues to be considered for this release>
+
+## 🔦 Highlights
 
 < top highlights for this release notes >
 
 ## Changelog
 
 < changelog generated by bin/mkreleaselog >
 
-## Contributors
+## ✅ Release Checklist
+
+For each RC published in each stage:
+
+- version string in `version.go` has been updated
+- tag commit with vX.Y.Z-rcN
+- [ ] Stage 1 - Internal Testing
+  - [ ] Feature freeze. If any non-trivial features get added to the release, uncheck all the checkboxes and return to this stage.
+  - [ ] CHANGELOG.md has been updated
+    - use `./bin/mkreleaselog` to generate a nice starter list
+    - use `./doc/RELEASE_TEMPLATE.md` as a template
+  - [ ] Automated Testing (already tested in CI) - Ensure that all tests are passing, this includes:
+    - [ ] unit
+    - [ ] sharness
+    - [ ] [interop](https://github.com/ipfs/interop#test-with-a-non-yet-released-version-of-go-ipfs)
+    - [ ] go-ipfs-api
+    - [ ] go-ipfs-http-client
+  - [ ] Network Testing:
+    - [ ] test lab things
+  - [ ] Infrastructure Testing:
+    - [ ] Deploy new version to a subset of Bootstrappers
+    - [ ] Deploy new version to a subset of Gateways
+    - [ ] Deploy new version to a subset of Preload nodes
+    - [ ] Collect metrics every day. Work with the Infrastructure team to learn of any hiccup
+  - [ ] IPFS Application Testing -  Run the tests of the following applications:
+    - [ ] WebUI
+    - [ ] IPFS Desktop
+    - [ ] IPFS Companion
+    - [ ] NPM on IPFS
+- [ ] Stage 2 - Public Beta
+  - [ ] Reach out to the IPFS _early testers_ listed in `docs/EARLY_TESTERS.md` for testing this release (check when no more problems have been reported). If you'd like to be added to this list, please file a PR.
+  - [ ] Reach out to on IRC for beta testers.
+  - [ ] Run tests available in the following repos with the latest beta (check when all tests pass):
+    - [ ] [orbit-db](https://github.com/orbitdb/orbit-db)
+- [ ] Stage 3 - Soft Release
+  - [ ] Documentation
+    - [ ] Ensure that CHANGELOG.md is up to date
+    - [ ] Ensure that README.md is up to date
+    - [ ] Ensure that all the examples we have produced for go-ipfs run without problems
+    - [ ] Update HTTP-API Documentation on the Website using https://github.com/ipfs/http-api-docs
+  - [ ] Invite the IPFS _early testers_ to deploy the release to part of their production infrastructure.
+  - [ ] Invite the wider community through (link to the release issue):
+    - [ ] [discuss.ipfs.io](https://discuss.ipfs.io/c/announcements)
+    - [ ] Twitter
+    - [ ] IRC
+- [ ] Stage 4 - Release
+  - [ ] Final preparation
+    - [ ] Verify that version string in `repo/version.go` has been updated
+    - [ ] tag commit with vX.Y.Z
+    - [ ] update release branch to point to release commit (`git merge vX.Y.Z`).
+    - [ ] publish dist.ipfs.io
+    - [ ] publish next version to https://github.com/ipfs/npm-go-ipfs
+  - [ ] Publish a Release Blog post (at minimum, a c&p of this release issue with all the highlights, API changes, link to changelog and thank yous)
+  - [ ] Broadcasting (link to blog post)
+    - [ ] Twitter
+    - [ ] IRC
+    - [ ] Reddit
+    - [ ] [discuss.ipfs.io](https://discuss.ipfs.io/c/announcements)
+    - [ ] Announce it on the [IPFS Users mlist](https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/ipfs-users)
+
+## ❤️ Contributors
 
 < list generated by bin/mkreleaselog >