Re: Git 1.0 Synopis (Draft v4)
Add a SYNOPSIS/release summary to the tree.
Signed-off-by: Ryan Anderson <ryan@michonline.com>
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+Source Code Management with git
+
+In Linus's own words as the creator of git:
+"git" can mean anything, depending on your mood.
+
+ - random three-letter combination that is pronounceable, and not
+ actually used by any common UNIX command. The fact that it is a
+ mispronunciation of "get" may or may not be relevant.
+ - stupid. contemptible and despicable. simple. Take your pick from the
+ dictionary of slang.
+ - "global information tracker": you're in a good mood, and it actually
+ works for you. Angels sing, and a light suddenly fills the room.
+ - "goddamn idiotic truckload of sh*t": when it breaks
+
+git is a "directory content manager". git has been designed to handle
+absolutely massive projects with speed and efficiency, and the release of the
+2.6.12 and (soon) the 2.6.13 version of the Linux kernel would indicate that it
+does this task well.
+
+git falls into the category of distributed source code management tools,
+similar to Arch or Darcs (or, in the commercial world, BitKeeper). Every git
+working directory is a full-fledged repository with full revision tracking
+capabilities, not dependent on network access to a central server.
+
+git provides a content-addressable pseudo filesystem, complete with its own
+version of fsck.
+
+ o Speed of use, both for the project maintainer, and the end-users, is
+ a key development principle.
+
+ o The history is stored as a directed acyclic graph, making long-lived
+ branches and repeated merging simple.
+
+ o The core git project considers itself to provide "plumbing" for other
+ projects, as well as to serve to arbitrate for compatibility between them.
+ The project built on top of the core git are referred to as "porcelain".
+ Stgit, Cogito, qgit, gitk and gitweb are all building upon the core git
+ tools, and providing an easy to use interface to various pieces of
+ functionality.
+
+ o Some other projects have taken the concepts from the core git project, and
+ are either porting an existing toolset to use the git tools, or
+ reimplementing the concepts internally, to benefit from the performance
+ improvements. This includes both Arch 2.0, and Darcs-git.
+
+ o Two, interchangeable, on-disk formats are used:
+ o An efficient, packed format that saves space and network
+ bandwidth.
+ o An unpacked format, optimized for fast writes and incremental
+ work.
+
+To get a copy of git:
+ Daily snapshots are available at:
+ http://www.codemonkey.org.uk/projects/git-snapshots/git/
+ (Thanks to Dave Jones)
+
+ Source tarballs and RPMs at:
+ http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/
+
+ Debian packages should be availabe in unstable (sid) as "git-core"
+
+ Or via git itself:
+ git clone http://www.kernel.org/pub/scm/git/git.git/ <local directory>
+ git clone rsync://rsync.kernel.org/pub/scm/git/git.git/ <local directory>
+
+ (rsync is generally faster for an initial clone, you can switch later
+ by editing .git/branches/origin and changing the url)
+
+To get the 'Porcelain' tools mentioned above:
+ SCM Interface layers:
+ cogito - http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/cogito/
+
+ Patch Management (similar to Quilt):
+ StGIT - http://www.procode.org/stgit/
+
+ History Visualization:
+ gitk - http://ozlabs.org/~paulus/gitk/ (Included in the standard git
+ distribution)
+ gitweb - http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/gitweb/
+ qgit - http://sourceforge.net/projects/qgit
+
+
+git distributions contain a tutorial in the Documentation subdirectory.
+Additionally, the Kernel-Hacker's git Tutorial at
+http://linux.yyz.us/git-howto.html may be useful. (Thanks to Jeff Garzik for
+that document)
+
+git development takes place on the git mailing list. To subscribe, send an
+email with just "subscribe git" in the body to majordomo@vger.kernel.org.
+Mailing list archives are available at http://marc.theaimsgroup.com/?l=git
+
+(This summary written by Ryan Anderson <ryan@michonline.com>. Please bug him
+with any corrections or complaints.)
--
Ryan Anderson
sometimes Pug Majere