From: Erik Bågfors <zindar@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2006 14:11:16 GMT
Subject: Re: VCS comparison table
Message-ID: <845b6e870610220711t8040a13g3dedbe18a2949ce1@mail.gmail.com>
In-Reply-To: <200610221524.00408.jnareb@gmail.com>

On 10/22/06, Jakub Narebski <jnareb@gmail.com> wrote:
> Erik Bågfors wrote:
> > Jakub Narębski wrote:
>
> >> For example git encourages using many short and longer-lived feature
> >> branches; I don't see bzr encouraging this workflow.
> >
> > Why not? I think it really does.  And due to the fact that merges are
> > merges and will show up as such, I think it's very suitable for
> > feature branches.
>
> I think I haven't properly explained what "feature branch" means.
> "Feature branch" is short (or medium) lived branch, created for
> development of one isolated feature. When feature is in stable
> stage, we merge feature branch and forget about it. We are not
> interested in the fact that given feature was developed on given
> branch. BTW. for example in published git.git repository are
> only available in the form of "digest" 'pu' (proposed updates)
> branch.


That's what I'm talking about too.
For example, in my bzr bzr-repo I have
bzr.init-repo-tree/
bzr.aliases/
bzr.dev/

and others...
In bzr.aliases for example, I built the support for defining aliases
in the bzr config file. That was a unique feature that didn't exist in
any other branch.  The branch survived about 17 days before it was
merged into bzr.dev.  During that time, I merge in another branch
twice.  The branch I merged at this time was NOT bzr.dev, but rather
another branch, from one of the main developers.  The reason I merged
his branch was that I needed a bugfix (or two? :) ) that he had done,
but that wasn't approved in bzr.dev yet.

After a time, his branch was merged into bzr.dev, shortly thereafter,
so was my branch.

After my branch was merged, I forgot about it.  I still have it laying
around on my computer because it really doesn't take up any extra
space (since it's in a shared repository), but I really have forgotten
about it.

This is typically how all features in bzr are created.
Short/medium/long-lived feature branches.

/Erik