Re: [PATCH] grep: --full-tree

From: Jeff King <peff@peff.net>
Date: Nov 27, 2009, 06:20 UTC
Message-ID: <20091127062013.GA20844@coredump.intra.peff.net>
In-Reply-To: <885649360911260956p58c54a54rd887102c9adedcc9@mail.gmail.com>

On Thu, Nov 26, 2009 at 10:56:55AM -0700, James Pickens wrote:

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> On Wed, Nov 25, 2009 at 3:20 PM, Jeff King <peff@peff.net> wrote:
> > Sure, there are all those downsides. But what is the other option?
> > Making me use the command line option (or pathspec magic) every single
> > time I invoke git grep?
> 
> Yes, but only when you want non-default behavior, not every single time.

Did you miss the part of the thread where I explained that in certain repos, I want it one way every single time, and in others, I want it the other way?

So yes, in certain repos, it really is every single time.

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> > That is a huge downside to me.
> 
> Is it *really*?  Does it also bother you that you have to tell standalone
> unix commands like diff and grep what you want them to diff or grep every
> single time you invoke them?

This is a strawman. I am not saying every command-line option should be made into a configuration option. I am saying that some options, including this one, would be useful as configuration options. I have already explained several times in this thread exactly what characteristics of this option make that so.

And please, questions like "Is it *really*?" don't add anything. Yes, really, or I wouldn't be having this discussion. This behavior has bitten me many times while using "git grep". I'm not making it up. Maybe I am the only one in the world, but I don't see how it makes any sense to argue that I am not actually annoyed by it.

> I really think that this config option wouldn't even help you, because
> you'll have to remember what that option is set to in each working repo,
> and type the right command based on the setting.  That seems worse than

No, the _point_ is that I don't have to remember the right command in each repo. I can set it up for the workflow that matches that repository and then issue "git grep" without remembering which type I'm in.

> If you can get the behavior you want using an alias or a script, then I
> suggest you do that.  I don't think this config option should be considered
> unless *many* people want it, and so far I count only 1.

Perhaps I am the only one who wants to use the config option per-repo. But we have already seen support for both behaviors, which means there are people who will be dissatisfied with either simply leaving the default or changing the default. And I don't want to speak for Junio, but he seemed to agree that what you most want would depend on the repo organization (though I think he may disagree that it is important enough to merit the hassle of a config option).

-Peff