Re: [PATCH] git-archive documentation: .gitattributes must be committed

From: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Date: Feb 10, 2010, 19:27 UTC
Message-ID: <7v1vgsao21.fsf@alter.siamese.dyndns.org>
In-Reply-To: <4B7303FC.6070701@lsrfire.ath.cx>

René Scharfe <rene.scharfe@lsrfire.ath.cx> writes:

Show 11 quoted lines

>> +The .gitattributes file must be present in the named tree for it to take
>> +effect. Uncommitted attributes will not be considered in exports.
>> +
>>  EXAMPLES
>>  --------
>>  git archive --format=tar --prefix=junk/ HEAD | (cd /var/tmp/ && tar xf -)::
>
> Yeah, the description of --worktree-attributes is a bit terse.  The
> lines you add make it appear almost as if this switch doesn't exist,
> though; perhaps add a "unless --worktree-attributes is given" or similar
> to one of the new sentences?

My impression has always been that people use attributes with archive more often to _tweak_ how the archive is produced after the fact, and they do so by modifying checked out .gitattributes (or $GIT_DIR/info/attributes) than allowing a possibly stale .gitattributes file etched in stone^Wtree being archived. So in that sense, probably --worktree-attributes should have been the default.

By the way, if you commit the attributes file, then commit the removal of that attributes file, would that removed attributes file take effect when you archive HEAD^ (which still had the attribues file)? That's how I read what the added description claims, but I somehow suspect that is not what actually happens.