Re: [PATCH 1/3] test-lib: Document short options in t/README

From: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Date: Mar 27, 2014, 16:35 UTC
Message-ID: <xmqqd2h7fvkw.fsf@gitster.dls.corp.google.com>
In-Reply-To: <5333F1E6.5060009@gmail.com>

Ilya Bobyr <ilya.bobyr@gmail.com> writes:

> If there is decision on how shortening should work for all the
> options, maybe I could add a paragraph on that and make existing
> options more consistent.

We should strive to make the following from gitcli.txt apply throughout the system:

 * many commands allow a long option `--option` to be abbreviated
   only to their unique prefix (e.g. if there is no other option
   whose name begins with `opt`, you may be able to spell `--opt` to
   invoke the `--option` flag), but you should fully spell them out
   when writing your scripts; later versions of Git may introduce a
   new option whose name shares the same prefix, e.g. `--optimize`,
   to make a short prefix that used to be unique no longer unique.

> If so, '--valgrind' becomes impossible to shorten because there
> is '--valgrind-only' that is a separate option.  Same for
> '--verbose'  and '--verbose-only'.

Correct. If you really cared, --valgrind={yes,no,only} would be (or have been) a better possibility, though.