# [PATCH] Documentation: Note file formats send-email accepts

2 messages from 2009-02-19 to 2009-02-21. Participants: Todd Zullinger, Greg KH.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/17884

## Todd Zullinger, 2009-02-19 03:51

Subject: [PATCH] Documentation: Note file formats send-email accepts
Message-ID: <20090219035106.GG4505@inocybe.teonanacatl.org>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/20090219035106.GG4505%40inocybe.teonanacatl.org

```

Signed-off-by: Todd Zullinger <tmz@pobox.com>
---

These formats are noted in the git-send-email.perl script, but not
mentioned in the documentation anywhere.  I debated adding a note that
the mbox format was generally preferred, but I wasn't sure if that was
important or appropriate.  I felt that I had bloated the Description
section enough already. :)

I hope that I got the aciidoc punctuation correct.  When to use ''
versus `` wasn't entirely clear.  So I made like a chamealeon and
tried to emulate what was nearby.

This was spurred by a bug report against the Fedora git packages:

    https://bugzilla.redhat.com/486103

 Documentation/git-send-email.txt |   13 +++++++++++++
 1 files changed, 13 insertions(+), 0 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/git-send-email.txt b/Documentation/git-send-email.txt
index ff4aeff..66bf3b2 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-send-email.txt
+++ b/Documentation/git-send-email.txt
@@ -19,6 +19,19 @@ The header of the email is configurable by command line options.  If not
 specified on the command line, the user will be prompted with a ReadLine
 enabled interface to provide the necessary information.

+There are two formats accepted for patch files:
+
+1. mbox format files
++
+This is what linkgit:git-format-patch[1] generates.  Most headers and MIME
+formatting are ignored.
+
+2. The original format used by Greg Kroah-Hartman's 'send_lots_of_email.pl'
+script
++
+This format expects the first line of the file to contain the "Cc:" value
+and the "Subject:" of the message as the second line.
+

 OPTIONS
 -------
-- 
1.6.1.3

-- 
Todd        OpenPGP -> KeyID: 0xBEAF0CE3 | URL: www.pobox.com/~tmz/pgp
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Most people would sooner die than think; in fact, they do so.
    -- Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)

```

## Greg KH, 2009-02-21 00:04

Subject: Re: [PATCH] Documentation: Note file formats send-email accepts
Message-ID: <20090221000440.GA7258@kroah.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/20090221000440.GA7258%40kroah.com
In-Reply-To: <20090219035106.GG4505@inocybe.teonanacatl.org>

```
On Wed, Feb 18, 2009 at 10:51:06PM -0500, Todd Zullinger wrote:
> +There are two formats accepted for patch files:
> +
> +1. mbox format files
> ++
> +This is what linkgit:git-format-patch[1] generates.  Most headers and MIME
> +formatting are ignored.
> +
> +2. The original format used by Greg Kroah-Hartman's 'send_lots_of_email.pl'
> +script

You're kidding me, right?  I really don't believe anyone uses any
patches in that format, I haven't used that script in so long I just
noticed that I didn't even have a copy of it anywhere.

So if for some reason you are trying to be backwards compatible to my
old code, don't do it on my behalf.

thanks,

greg k-h

```