Re: git bisect/checkout and changes to .gitignore

> At my workplace we use git to manage all of our source code. Every now
> and then, we decide that some particular file oughtn't to be
> git-managed, and add it into .gitignore and remove it from the
> repository (for instance, configuration files that become
> per-developer).
> 
> Is there a way to checkout an old version of the repository (before
> the file was added to .gitignore), then return to the current state,
> without destroying these sorts of files? Currently, checking out the
> old version quietly "takes control" of the file, and then checking out
> a newer one deletes it.
> 
> I've read through the man pages for 'git checkout' and 'gitignore' and
> searched the one for 'git config' (it's a little large to read all
> of), without seeing an option to preserve files on checkout. Is there
> a way to do this, and if so, where can I find it?