Post: #1

I have been asked, and seen this question a lot lately, coming from a lot of different people. So lets clarify.

The 2013 56b pre-release is perfectly fine to use if you don't want to, or like to use a "nightly" build, though you should ideally not be running anything older than this version.

If you are wanting to use the "cutting edge" server with the latest bug fixes and new features then you should try the 56c "nightly" build.

Now the important part...

Just because this build is called a "nightly" does not mean that you have to download a new version every single day.
It is perfectly fine to use for a shard, though this is the version that is now in development. It is just as stable as the 56b pre-release though it has more bug fixes & new features (e.g. sqlite support)
You only really need to update your server when using 56c if a feature you want is added, or if an important bug fix is implemented.
Though personally I would suggest updating your nightly version about once a month to keep abreast of the latest changes. This can be something as minimal as switching out the .exe in your sphere folder, though you should read the revisions.txt and check the .ini settings for any changes.

Post: #2

Useful.

Post: #3

At first I have to say this is a nice post and very usefull, but I want to add a note: We have a bugtracker keeping up a 'list' of active problems/bugs and what is being solved and, for those who don't trust our words, anyone can take a look at it and see that old bugs are being fixed in newer versions along with features additions and some script pack updates.

And, the production build is the latest build, other than this does not have any support (obviously).