Re: [PATCH 2/2] Documentation/MyFirstContribution: recommend the use of b4

From: Patrick Steinhardt <ps@pks.im>
Date: Jun 3, 2026, 06:54 UTC
Message-ID: <ah_PwOsbYfDCx0H2@pks.im>
In-Reply-To: <ah8ALHMDVA2Gzz10@wyuan.org>

On Wed, Jun 03, 2026 at 12:09:16AM +0800, Weijie Yuan wrote:

Show 7 quoted lines

> > +Contributors are encouraged to use `b4`, which automates much of the
> > +bookkeeping that is otherwise done by hand.
> 
> So for statement like this and with my personal experience, I would say
> b4 is a more suitable option for senior contributors, as they already
> know, for example, what Message-ID and range-diffs are. But apparently,
> whose who use forges may not know.

I think it's perfectly suitable for newcomers, too. It automates so many of the concepts that a contributor has to learn way less about mailing list specific concepts, which reduces the learning curve.

Show 9 quoted lines

> Back to the patch, I think regarding b4 as a more advanced contribution
> way for those who had contributed via mailing lists for more than one
> time is a better expression or formulation. Here I mean "b4 prep", other
> usage like "b4 mbox" and "b4 am" are of course more basic, and be
> mentioned as tips when interacting with Git mailing list.
> 
> A bit too wordy, in conclusion: Suggest that new contributors master
> classic git operations first. When they are familiar with those process,
> b4 might be a good option.

Ah, that's what you're hinting at. So you mean to say that folks should first understand the basics before basically automating all of the parts for them?

I guess I can see where you're coming from, but I'm not sure I agree with this a 100%. My main goal is to make it easier for new community members to contribute to Git, and that means that we should automate all the hard parts as far as possible. This saves those new contributors from frustration, and it means that reviewers on the mailing list won't have to teach every single new contributor about how they should thread the mails, generate range-diffs and the like.

So in the end, it saves both their and our time, but the learning opportunity is of course a bit diminished. I'd gladly accept that tradeoff though.

Thanks for your input!

Patrick