From: Junio C Hamano Date: Sun, 10 Jun 2007 08:30:45 GMT Subject: Re: [PATCH] Change softrefs file format from text (82 bytes per entry) to binary (40 bytes per entry) Message-ID: <7vir9w8b4a.fsf@assigned-by-dhcp.cox.net> In-Reply-To: Johannes Schindelin writes: > On Sat, 9 Jun 2007, Johan Herland wrote: > >> The text-based softrefs file format uses 82 bytes per entry (40 bytes >> from_sha1 in hex, 1 byte SP, 40 bytes to_sha1 in hex, 1 byte LF). >> >> The binary softrefs file format uses 40 bytes per entry (20 bytes >> from_sha1, 20 bytes to_sha1). >> >> Moving to a binary format increases performance slightly, but sacrifices >> easy readability of the softrefs files. > > It is bad style to introduce one type, and then change it to another in a > backwards-incompatible way. Either you make it backwards compatible, or > you start with the second format, never even mentioning that you had > another format. While I agree with that in principle, I think you are being a bit too harsh to a set of patches that shows possible alternatives for an idea that is not even in any unreleased version of git. Got out of the wrong side of bed this morning?