From: Jim Meyering <jim@meyering.net>
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 16:42:28 GMT
Subject: Re: [PATCH] Don't write directly to a make target ($@).
Message-ID: <871wui5a4r.fsf@rho.meyering.net>
In-Reply-To: <7vejyixe5g.fsf@assigned-by-dhcp.cox.net>

Junio C Hamano <junkio@cox.net> wrote:
> Jim Meyering <jim@meyering.net> writes:
>
>> Otherwise, if make is suspended, or killed with prejudice, or if the
>> system crashes, you could be left with an up-to-date, yet corrupt,
>> generated file.
>
> Thanks.  Maybe you would want a "make clean" target for them too
> if you do this.  I often use $@+ instead of t$@ so that I can
> say "rm -f *+" there.

I chose a prefix rather than a suffix, so that if git is built on a file
system with unreasonable file name length limitations, the prefix will
distinguish the temporary from the target; in that situation, a suffixed
temporary name could map to the target name.

However, assuming reasonable file name length limits, using a suffix is
generally better, since it works even when the target is an absolute
name.  Adding a prefix obviously won't work with an absolute name.

I'm happy to ignore 14-byte(and 8.3)-limited file systems and
go with a suffix, if you still prefer that.  New patch coming up.