Cask qgis should default to LTR, not Latest Release

[rmx90210]

Output of brew config

n/a

Output of brew doctor

n/a

Description of issue

Currently, brew install --cask qgis installs QGIS 4.2 ("Belém do Pará"), which is the Latest Release (LR) track. QGIS labels this track "early adopter" — including on the application's own splash screen at launch.

QGIS's download page (https://qgis.org/download/) states:

If you are unsure which version is best for you, download the LTR.

This directly conflicts with Homebrew's current default, which installs the version QGIS itself warns is for early adopters.

Proposed change

• Rename the current qgis cask to qgis@lr (matching QGIS's official technical terminology for that track: "Latest Release")
• Promote qgis@ltr to the un-suffixed qgis

This is a net-zero change in maintenance burden — no new cask, just a swap — and it would align Homebrew's default with both QGIS's own recommendation and the broader Homebrew convention that pre-release or early-adopter channels are opt-in.

Precedent in other casks

For most major casks (Chrome, Firefox, VS Code), "latest stable" and "what upstream recommends for most users" are the same thing, so the un-suffixed cask is unambiguously correct. QGIS is unusual in having a dual-track release model where upstream explicitly distinguishes between a conservative track (LTR) and an early-adopter track (LR), and explicitly directs uncertain users to the LTR.

A note on QGIS release terminology

QGIS uses inconsistent names for the LR track across their materials: "Latest Release (LR)" in their technical documentation and GitHub README, and "Regular Version" on their download page buttons. We use "LR" here as it is the formal abbreviation and mirrors the existing LTR naming.

References

• QGIS download page: https://qgis.org/download/
• QGIS release terminology (LTR vs LR): https://github.com/qgis/QGIS

Relevant casks

qgis