diff --git a/Include/patchlevel.h b/Include/patchlevel.h
index 4e9358c7993..3a17df4fe7e 100644
--- a/Include/patchlevel.h
+++ b/Include/patchlevel.h
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@
 #define PY_RELEASE_SERIAL	1
 
 /* Version as a string */
-#define PY_VERSION		"2.4a1"
+#define PY_VERSION		"2.4a1+"
 
 /* Version as a single 4-byte hex number, e.g. 0x010502B2 == 1.5.2b2.
    Use this for numeric comparisons, e.g. #if PY_VERSION_HEX >= ... */