Re: [PATCH] clone,fetch: explain the shallow-clone option a little more clearly

From: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Date: Dec 6, 2016, 18:29 UTC
Message-ID: <xmqqshq029o7.fsf@gitster.mtv.corp.google.com>
In-Reply-To: <CACsJy8Cy+iWw4NhR7B_fZhBMMYt2QxdMeFsC=++LLnrTLNWfKw@mail.gmail.com>

Duy Nguyen <pclouds@gmail.com> writes:

Show 5 quoted lines

> On Tue, Dec 6, 2016 at 1:28 AM, Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com> wrote:
>> I however offhand do not think the feature can be used to make the
>> repository shallower
>
> I'm pretty sure it can,...

I wrote my message after a short local testing, but it is very possible I botched it and reached a wrong conclusion above.

If we can use the command to make it shallower, then the phrase "deepen" would probably be what we need to be fixing in this patch:

>  	OPT_STRING_LIST(0, "shallow-exclude", &option_not, N_("revision"),
> -			N_("deepen history of shallow clone by excluding rev")),
> +			N_("deepen history of shallow clone, excluding rev")),

Perhaps a shorter version of:

    Adjust the depth of shallow clone so that commits that are
    decendants of the named rev are made available, while commits
    that are ancestors of the named rev are made beyond reach.

or something like that.  Here is my (somewhat botched) attempt:

    Adjust shallow clone's history to be cut at the rev