new extension vs. old one

Are we planning on scrapping the old extension and trying to go with the new
one only or are we going to keep the old one and roll out a new one under a
different name?

In previous threads it was discussed about php4 and php5 compatibility. I
don't see this as being too realistic right now.  The new extension so far
is leveraging a lot of new features of the engine. Not only will it allow us
to get closer to the specs, but also making it easier to deal with the
libxml2 handling.

Also, how long will php4 be supported once php5 rolls out?

Basically will we need to keep supporting the old extension or is that
pretty much it other than possible bug fixes (if they are serious)?

Rob