MR Process: List release branches by date

[zepumph]

This would be useful as a script, to be run by devs, and also useful for the MR process, so that you can easily go "back in time" as you patch older and older versions for you patch. @jonathanolson and I have spoke about this before, but I didn't see another issue for it

[zepumph]

Current we only sort alphabetically by repo then branch

perennial/js/common/Maintenance.js

Lines 1213 to 1221 in 52376ab

	modifiedBranches.sort( ( a, b ) => {
	if ( a.repo !== b.repo ) {
	return a.repo < b.repo ? -1 : 1;
	}
	if ( a.branch !== b.branch ) {
	return a.branch < b.branch ? -1 : 1;
	}
	return 0;
	} );

[zepumph]

the grunt task release-branch-list likely already has this logic.

[zepumph]

Here is the current output of the grunt task:

 mjkauzmann ~/PHET/git/perennial (main)
 $ grunt release-branch-list --order=date
Running "release-branch-list" task
loading phet brand ReleaseBranches
(node:34356) [DEP0040] DeprecationWarning: The `punycode` module is deprecated. Please use a userland alternative instead.
(Use `node --trace-deprecation ...` to show where the warning was created)
loading phet-io brand ReleaseBranches
loading unreleased ReleaseBranches

Release branches:
{repo} {branch} {brand[,brand]+} {date}

trig-tour 1.0 phet 2016-01-29
wave-on-a-string 1.1 phet 2016-02-25
least-squares-regression 1.1 phet 2016-03-11
energy-skate-park-basics 1.1 phet 2016-04-14
area-builder 1.1 phet 2016-05-04
under-pressure 1.1 phet 2016-05-10
bending-light 1.1 phet 2016-08-23
charges-and-fields 1.0 phet 2016-08-29
neuron 1.1 phet 2016-09-14
color-vision 1.2-phetio phet-io 2016-11-03
faradays-law 1.3-phetio phet-io 2016-11-03
molecules-and-light 1.3-phetio phet-io 2016-11-03
forces-and-motion-basics 2.1-phetio phet-io 2016-11-05
charges-and-fields 1.0-phetio phet-io 2016-11-18
concentration 1.5-phetio phet-io 2016-11-22
energy-skate-park-basics 1.3-phetio phet-io 2017-01-13
make-a-ten 1.0 phet 2017-01-25
resistance-in-a-wire 1.3-phetio phet-io 2017-05-05
john-travoltage 1.4-phetio phet-io 2017-05-09
proportion-playground 1.0 phet 2017-05-12
balloons-and-static-electricity 1.3-phetio phet-io 2017-05-23
build-an-atom 1.5-phetio phet-io 2017-05-24
plinko-probability 1.1 phet 2017-06-08
forces-and-motion-basics 2.3 phet 2017-06-21
expression-exchange 1.1 phet 2017-06-26
build-an-atom 1.6 phet 2017-07-17
projectile-motion 1.0 phet 2017-08-15
pendulum-lab 1.0 phet 2017-08-28
gene-expression-essentials 1.0 phet 2017-11-14
capacitor-lab-basics 1.6 phet,phet-io 2018-01-24
equality-explorer-basics 1.0 phet 2018-07-13
equality-explorer-two-variables 1.0 phet 2018-07-13
molarity 1.4 phet-io 2018-08-03
reactants-products-and-leftovers 1.2 phet 2018-08-03
masses-and-springs 1.0 phet 2018-08-22
rutherford-scattering 1.1 phet 2018-08-27
coulombs-law 1.0 phet 2018-10-16
resistance-in-a-wire 1.6 phet 2018-11-07
balancing-chemical-equations 1.2 phet 2018-12-10
build-a-fraction 1.0 phet 2019-01-16
fractions-intro 1.0 phet 2019-01-16
fractions-mixed-numbers 1.0 phet 2019-01-16
masses-and-springs-basics 1.0 phet 2019-02-01
isotopes-and-atomic-mass 1.1 phet 2019-03-22
ohms-law 1.4 phet 2019-05-01
blackbody-spectrum 1.0 phet 2019-05-29
fractions-equality 1.1 phet 2019-06-05
fraction-matcher 1.2 phet 2019-06-05
wave-interference 2.0 phet 2019-08-13
curve-fitting 1.0 phet 2019-10-16
vector-addition 1.0 phet 2019-10-23
vector-addition-equations 1.0 phet 2019-10-23
molarity 1.5 phet 2019-12-19
gravity-force-lab 2.2 phet,phet-io 2020-01-28
build-a-molecule 1.0 phet 2020-06-19
molecules-and-light 1.5 phet 2020-06-23
states-of-matter 1.2 phet,phet-io 2020-07-31
states-of-matter-basics 1.2 phet,phet-io 2020-07-31
atomic-interactions 1.2 phet 2020-07-31
energy-forms-and-changes 1.4 phet,phet-io 2020-08-27
natural-selection 1.2 phet-io 2020-09-17
faradays-law 1.4 phet 2020-12-02
waves-intro 1.1 phet 2020-12-08
collision-lab 1.1 phet 2021-01-20
natural-selection 1.3 phet-io 2021-04-13
gravity-and-orbits 1.5 phet-io 2021-06-21
natural-selection 1.4 phet-io 2021-06-21
ph-scale-basics 1.5 phet-io 2021-07-13
john-travoltage 1.6 phet 2021-07-22
gravity-force-lab-basics 1.1 phet 2021-08-30
balloons-and-static-electricity 1.5 phet 2021-09-07
greenhouse-effect 1.0 phet-io 2021-09-14
fourier-making-waves 1.0 phet 2021-09-28
normal-modes 1.0 phet 2021-11-03
equality-explorer 1.1 phet 2021-11-09
circuit-construction-kit-ac 1.0 phet 2021-12-03
circuit-construction-kit-ac-virtual-lab 1.0 phet 2021-12-03
function-builder 1.2 phet 2022-05-26
function-builder-basics 1.2 phet 2022-05-26
gravity-and-orbits 1.6 phet,phet-io 2022-09-26
ratio-and-proportion 1.2 phet 2022-11-11
ph-scale 1.6 phet,phet-io 2022-12-24
ph-scale-basics 1.6 phet,phet-io 2022-12-24
friction 1.6 phet,phet-io 2023-01-17
beers-law-lab 1.7 phet,phet-io 2023-02-03
concentration 1.7 phet,phet-io 2023-02-03
molecule-shapes 1.6 phet,phet-io 2023-02-21
molecule-shapes-basics 1.6 phet,phet-io 2023-02-21
circuit-construction-kit-dc 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-02-23
circuit-construction-kit-dc-virtual-lab 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-03-10
calculus-grapher 1.0 phet,phet-io 2023-03-28
number-play 1.1 phet 2023-04-07
number-compare 1.0 phet 2023-04-13
density 1.1 phet-io 2023-05-10
geometric-optics 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-05-17
geometric-optics-basics 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-05-17
molecule-polarity 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-06-15
quadrilateral 1.1 phet 2023-06-28
graphing-quadratics 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-07-06
natural-selection 1.5 phet,phet-io 2023-08-03
greenhouse-effect 1.2 phet-io 2023-08-22
sound-waves 1.1 phet 2023-09-11
acid-base-solutions 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-09-13
build-a-nucleus 1.1 phet 2023-09-26
center-and-variability 1.1 phet,phet-io 2023-10-09
number-line-distance 1.1 phet 2023-11-30
energy-skate-park 1.3 phet 2023-12-04
number-line-operations 1.1 phet 2023-12-08
my-solar-system 1.3 phet,phet-io 2023-12-11
number-line-integers 1.2 phet 2023-12-13
keplers-laws 1.2 phet,phet-io 2024-02-02
area-model-algebra 1.3 phet 2024-02-15
area-model-multiplication 1.3 phet 2024-02-15
area-model-decimals 1.3 phet 2024-03-15
area-model-introduction 1.3 phet 2024-03-15
arithmetic 1.2 phet 2024-03-20
graphing-lines 1.4 phet 2024-04-06
graphing-slope-intercept 1.2 phet 2024-04-06
projectile-data-lab 1.0 phet,phet-io 2024-04-09
projectile-sampling-distributions 1.0 phet,phet-io 2024-04-24
balancing-act 1.3 phet 2024-05-02
greenhouse-effect 1.3 phet,phet-io 2024-05-13
hookes-law 1.1 phet 2024-07-02
gas-properties 1.1 phet,phet-io 2024-07-10
gases-intro 1.1 phet,phet-io 2024-07-11
diffusion 1.1 phet,phet-io 2024-07-11
faradays-electromagnetic-lab 1.0 phet,phet-io 2024-07-18
magnet-and-compass 1.0 phet,phet-io 2024-07-18
magnets-and-electromagnets 1.0 phet,phet-io 2024-07-18
generator 1.0 phet,phet-io 2024-07-18
mean-share-and-balance 1.1 phet,phet-io 2024-07-23
density 1.2 phet,phet-io 2024-09-10
buoyancy 1.2 phet,phet-io 2024-09-10
buoyancy-basics 1.2 phet,phet-io 2024-09-10
color-vision 1.3 phet 2024-10-02
unit-rates 1.1 phet 2024-10-05
reactants-products-and-leftovers 1.3 phet (unpublished) 2024-10-30
vector-addition 1.1 phet (unpublished) 2024-11-06
vector-addition-equations 1.1 phet (unpublished) 2024-11-06
balancing-chemical-equations 1.3 phet (unpublished) 2024-11-13

This uses the timestamp of when the branch was created, not when the first production deploy occurred or some other "released" metric.

[zepumph]

It is good to know that this grunt task is working, but @marlitas mentioned taking this on with a bit of a different implementation:

1. use the website metadata to get the date based on when the sim was set to published in the admin page.
2. Parse package.json files to get a list of features associated with those sims as well (supportsDynamicLocale etc).

Assigning over to her for next steps.