Re: [PATCH] branch: add '-' to delete previous branch

From: Sergey Organov <sorganov@gmail.com>
Date: Apr 29, 2020, 19:50 UTC
Message-ID: <87v9likr5a.fsf@osv.gnss.ru>
In-Reply-To: <20200429190013.GG83442@syl.local>

Taylor Blau <me@ttaylorr.com> writes:

[...]

> In my opinion, it is fairly clear that 'git branch -D -' means "delete
> the last branch", and not "delete a list of branches from stdin.

Honestly, I'd never guess it'd "delete the last branch". No way.

"-" standing by itself in a command means stdin, stdout, or otherwise a typo. Using it for any other meaning is a blasphemy. Sure, nobody will die because of this, but it's /extremely/ confusing!

BTW, what about mistyping:

$ git branch -d - f my_branch

for

$ git branch -d -f my_branch

or some such?

No, it still doesn't look like a good idea to use isolated '-' as suggested by the patch.

OTOH, for otherwise unusual @{-1}, @{-}, or @- I'd immediately realize I must consult the manual, so these would be fine with me.

Thanks, -- Sergey