From: Matthieu Moy <matthieu.moy@grenoble-inp.fr>
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2011 09:40:13 GMT
Subject: Re: [PATCHv2 3/3] git-add: rename -u to -a
Message-ID: <vpqwrkkpkea.fsf@bauges.imag.fr>
In-Reply-To: <4D6B5D09.8010806@drmicha.warpmail.net>

Michael J Gruber <git@drmicha.warpmail.net> writes:

> But just how useful is our default that "git add" is a no-op?

I dont care very much myself, but if you consider "git add ." as a
potentially destructive operation (discards changes that may be precious
in the index), then it's good that "git add" is a no-op.

Many beginners will try commands expecting to get a help message or a
hint on how to use it when ran without argument (principle of least
surprise)

Like:

$ ls
file1 file2
=> oh, so "ls" lists files.
$ rm
rm: missing operand
Try `rm --help' for more information.
=> ok, so rm needs more operands

A user typing "git add" just "to see what happens" may be disapointed to
have all its files added. In particular since "git add" is silent by
default, hence

# let's see what happens ...
$ git add
$ 
# ok, nothing happened ...
# continue hacking without noticing that a bunch of files have been added.

Mercurial has taken the other way, making "hg add" add everything by
default, and some users do complain:

http://osdir.com/ml/version-control.mercurial.general/2007-08/msg00316.html

If you change this for Git, you'll have people complaining about
backward compatibility plus people complaining about least surprise :-(

> - "add" should be about tracked paths by default (default pathspec "."),
>
> - "commit -a,--add <addopts>" be "add <addopts> && commit", and
>
> - "-A,--all pathspec" (default pathspec ".") be about tracked and
> untracked paths (whether add or commit).

Today, "git add ." adds new content in tracked files, and new files, but
doesn't notice files deletions. Did I miss something, or is there no way
to do that with your proposal?

-- 
Matthieu Moy
http://www-verimag.imag.fr/~moy/