Re: [PATCH] Makefile: add and use the ".DELETE_ON_ERROR" flag

> Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason wrote:
>> On Mon, Jun 28 2021, Junio C Hamano wrote:
>
>> > I do not see a point in complicating the build procedure to avoid
>> > using it.
>> 
>> I'd really understand your and Jeff's concerns if I was proposing some
>> really complex workaround, but it's just extending & making consistent
>> the "mv" dance we already use for 1/2 our rules already.
>
> I'm not entirely sure what's going on here. We have agreed that
> .DELETE_ON_ERROR and the "mv" dance are orthogonal. So the patch to use
> .DELETE_ON_ERROR can move forward, while the "mv" dance can be discussed
> later.
>
> Like Junio and Jeff, I don't see much value in the "mv" dance, but that
> doesn't mean I want it gone. On the contrary, I would to try a scenario
> in which it's usefull.
>
> But that is *orthogonal*. Leave that for another discussion.

>> Even if you don't care about the end result or making git easier to hack
>> on for people who don't share your setup,
>
> I don't know about Junio, I do want to make git easier to hack for
> people that don't share my setup, but I would like to know what that
> setup is.

>> I'd think that making those rules consistent across the board makes
>> things less complex, not more.
>
> I don't agree with that. Consistency is just one of the many factors we
> have to consider. Even if 90% of instances in the documentation said
> "fast forward", that doesn't necessarily mean we should convert the
> remaining 10% away from "fast-foward".
>
> First we need to decide what is the end-goal we want to reach, and then
> we can go for consistency.
>
> But again, this is orthogonal to this patch, isn't it?

>> Anyway, let's not discussed this forever. We're clearly getting
>> nowhere. Just for the record I'm quite miffed about the bar for "I don't
>> care about this area/platform/use-case, but this person actively sending
>> me patches in the area says it's helpful to send more patches" is so
>> low.
>
> I don't think it's quite like that. Skepticism doesn't mean disapproval.
>
> I for one are skeptic of the possitive value of the "mv" dance, but I
> wouldn't be surprised in the least if you showed the value in 4 lines of
> code. I just haven't seen them yet.
>
> Once again... That's orthogonal to this patch.

>> Maybe that's all worth it, and I'd be willing to take the Windows devs
>> at their word that dealing with the make dependency was really *that*
>> painful. But compare that to carrying a few lines of "mv $@+ $@" to, I
>> daresay, make the same or larger relative improvement on AIX.
>
> Oh I don't trust them at all. I did maintain some Windows installers for
> years, and with a couple of tricks I had no problem building them with
> plain Makefiles, with much more complex dependencies.
>
> I'm fairly certain I could make git build for Windows with plain
> Makefiles... But one controversy at a time.