Re: [PATCH 1/2] fetch-pack: remove fetch_if_missing=0

From: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Date: May 7, 2020, 15:02 UTC
Message-ID: <xmqqmu6j4wlq.fsf@gitster.c.googlers.com>
In-Reply-To: <CAP8UFD2b_27VeLFg3BrbacoJ5+GAxa+JrF3E2jS_dN-xyCRP_Q@mail.gmail.com>

Christian Couder <christian.couder@gmail.com> writes:

Show 17 quoted lines

> On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 9:57 PM Hariom Verma via GitGitGadget
> <gitgitgadget@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> From: Hariom Verma <hariom18599@gmail.com>
>>
>> Commit 6462d5e ("fetch: remove fetch_if_missing=0", 2019-11-08)
>> strove to remove the need for fetch_if_missing=0 from the fetching
>> mechanism, so it is plausible to attempt removing fetch_if_missing=0
>> from fetch-pack as well.
>
> It's ok to refer to a previous commit, but I think it would be better
> if you could repeat a bit the reasons why removing the
> fetch_if_missing global is a good idea, and not just rely on the
> previous commit.
>
> "it is plausible" also doesn't make it very clear that it's what the
> patch is actually doing.

I had the same reaction. You could even write a random gibberish in your patch and write "it's plausible this set of random changes made without understanding what is going on in the current code might have some chance to work" in your log message, and we would not even want to touch such a patch with 10-foot pole.

The proposed log message above unfortunately makes this patch indistinguishable from such a trash, unless we follow the codepaths that are *not* touched by this patch and think about ramifications of the removal *ourselves*. In other words, it does nothing to help the readers to support the change.