Re: re-mentioning --preserve-merges in the docs
- From
Johannes Schindelin <johannes.schindelin@gmx.de>
- Date
- Jul 29, 2022, 13:24 UTC
- Message-ID
- <084n300p-4qp2-qp6n-232o-qs7po3q375n7@tzk.qr>
- In-Reply-To
- <xmqqwnc6fcik.fsf@gitster.g>
Hi Junio,
On Thu, 21 Jul 2022, Junio C Hamano wrote:
Show 46 quoted lines
> Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason <avarab@gmail.com> writes: > > > On Tue, Sep 07 2021, Johannes Schindelin via GitGitGadget wrote: > > > >> From: Johannes Schindelin <johannes.schindelin@gmx.de> > >> [...] > >> --p:: > >> ---preserve-merges:: > >> - [DEPRECATED: use `--rebase-merges` instead] Recreate merge commits > >> - instead of flattening the history by replaying commits a merge commit > >> - introduces. Merge conflict resolutions or manual amendments to merge > >> - commits are not preserved. > > > > [In reply to an old commit] > > > > I opened "man git-rebase" today due to an on-list discussion and went > > through pretty much: > > > > 1. /preserve-merges # fails > > 2. skimming the SYNOPSIS, forgetting what the new thing is called > > 3. Paging down, eventually findinging & remembering the new thing is > > "--rebase-merges". > > > > I wonder if there's objections to reinstating this in the docs > > somewhere, just as something like: > > > > --preserve-merges: > > An old "rebase" backend which is no longer supported, > > and which was removed from git in version v2.35.0. > > > > We don't do that with all flags that we've dropped, but perhaps this one > > was well known enough to not leave readers hanging... > > My impression is that we consider that we have done so already for a > few releases by keeping "DEPRECATED: use rebase-merges", exactly > because "this one was well known enough", and now it is time to go > one step further, i.e. drop it from the document like the quoted > patch does, while recognising an attempt to use the option and > giving a custom message than the bog-standard "unknown option". > > $ git rebase --preserve-merges > fatal: --preserve-merges was replaced by --rebase-merges > Note: Your `pull.rebase` configuration may also be set to 'preserve', > which is no longer supported; use 'merges' instead > > The next step will be to drop that custom error support, I think.
Fully agree.
I _could_ see us introducing a sentence in the explanation of `--rebase-merges` that leaves a historical note about superseding the now-removed `--preserve-merges` option. But such historical notes tend to go pretty stale pretty quickly, and eventually cause more confusion than clarification.
So just like you said, I'd rather not re-introduce any text mentioning `--preserve-merges` into the manual page.
Ciao, Dscho