-Relating that to netdev: At the beginning of the 2-week merge window,
-the ``net-next`` tree will be closed - no new changes/features. The
-accumulated new content of the past ~10 weeks will be passed onto
+To find out where we are now in the cycle - load the mainline (Linus)
+page here:
+
+ https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git
+
+and note the top of the "tags" section. If it is rc1, it is early in
+the dev cycle. If it was tagged rc7 a week ago, then a release is
+probably imminent. If the most recent tag is a final release tag
+(without an ``-rcN`` suffix) - we are most likely in a merge window
+and ``net-next`` is closed.
+
+git trees and patch flow
+------------------------
+
+There are two networking trees (git repositories) in play. Both are
+driven by David Miller, the main network maintainer. There is the
+``net`` tree, and the ``net-next`` tree. As you can probably guess from
+the names, the ``net`` tree is for fixes to existing code already in the
+mainline tree from Linus, and ``net-next`` is where the new code goes
+for the future release. You can find the trees here:
+
+- https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/netdev/net.git
+- https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/netdev/net-next.git
+
+Relating that to kernel development: At the beginning of the 2-week
+merge window, the ``net-next`` tree will be closed - no new changes/features.
+The accumulated new content of the past ~10 weeks will be passed onto