Stirling-PDF vs Argo CD
Side-by-side trajectory, velocity, and editorial themes.
Stirling-PDF deepens real signing and lays MCP groundwork on a fast V2 cadence
Stirling-PDF is in a heavy release cadence on its V2 line, alternating substantive minors with rapid hotfixes. The last month shipped desktop hardware-token signing (PKCS#11/smart-card and OS cert stores), a work-in-progress MCP page, JDK 25 enforcement, and large merge-memory improvements, punctuated by Postgres and desktop-signing hotfixes.
Two threads stand out: deepening real document signing (hardware tokens, shared signing, cert-store integration) and laying agent-facing groundwork via an MCP page and automation-oriented backend work. The team is also steadily reworking the V2 file-management UI that users found clunky. This is a self-hosted PDF tool maturing toward serious signing and automation use.
Expect the MCP page to move from WIP toward a usable agent interface, and the signing feature set to broaden beyond desktop-only.
Argo CD's 3.5 line is in release-candidate hardening after a feature-heavy rc1 (Helm 4, supply-chain, Gateway API).
Argo CD shipped 3.4.0 to GA and has moved the 3.5 line into release candidates. The 3.5.0-rc1 carried a large feature set: Helm 3-to-4 migration, opt-in source-integrity verification for the hydrator, Gateway API support in the network view, mTLS in the repo-server, server-operation impersonation, and ApplicationSet UI work, while rc2 is bug-fix stabilization. The project keeps a strong supply-chain posture with cosign-signed images and SLSA Level 3 provenance.
Argo CD is converging 3.5 toward GA, so expect further rc bug-fix rounds until it stabilizes. The 3.5 theme blends supply-chain security (source integrity, provenance, mTLS), ecosystem currency (Helm 4, Gateway API), and ApplicationSet and UI maturation. After GA, the rolling stable tag advances and the 3.4 line drops to maintenance cherry-picks.
Expect one or more further 3.5.0 release candidates with bug-fix cherry-picks, then a 3.5.0 GA that moves the rolling stable tag forward.
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