Re: [PATCH v4] Improve remote-helpers documentation
Looks good, other than an optional suggestion below. Incidentally, it's often helpful to describe the differences between earlier versions and v4 of the patch between the "---" and the diffstat; that part of the email doesn't go into the commit, but can be seen by reviewers.
On Mon, 22 Mar 2010, Ramkumar Ramachandra wrote:
Show 65 quoted lines
> Signed-off-by: Ramkumar Ramachandra <artagnon@gmail.com>
> ---
> Documentation/git-remote-helpers.txt | 40 +++++++++++++++++----------------
> 1 files changed, 21 insertions(+), 19 deletions(-)
>
> diff --git a/Documentation/git-remote-helpers.txt
> b/Documentation/git-remote-helpers.txt
> index 1b5f61a..2d5aa8c 100644
> --- a/Documentation/git-remote-helpers.txt
> +++ b/Documentation/git-remote-helpers.txt
> @@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ git-remote-helpers(1)
>
> NAME
> ----
> -git-remote-helpers - Helper programs for interoperation with remote git
> +git-remote-helpers - Helper programs for interacting with remote repositories
>
> SYNOPSIS
> --------
> @@ -13,10 +13,23 @@ DESCRIPTION
> -----------
>
> These programs are normally not used directly by end users, but are
> -invoked by various git programs that interact with remote repositories
> -when the repository they would operate on will be accessed using
> -transport code not linked into the main git binary. Various particular
> -helper programs will behave as documented here.
> +invoked by various git programs that interact with remote
> +repositories. For a program to qualify as a remote helper, it must
> +implement a subset of the capabilities documented here, and conform to
> +the remote helper protocol. Remote helpers are spawned as binaries by
> +the main git programs and interact using text streams, without
> +linking.
> +
> +The curl helper is one such program. It is invoked via
> +'git-remote-http', 'git-remote-https', 'git-remote-ftp', or
> +'git-remote-ftps', and implments the capabilities 'fetch', 'option',
> +and 'push'. The curl helper essentially helps in transporting native
> +git objects.
> +
> +As opposed to native git objects, remote helpers can also provide a
> +fast-import stream through the 'import' capability. This makes them
> +especially useful when native interoperability with a foreign
> +versioning system is desired.
>
> COMMANDS
> --------
> @@ -118,17 +131,9 @@ capabilities reported by the helper.
> CAPABILITIES
> ------------
>
> -'fetch'::
> - This helper supports the 'fetch' command.
> -
> -'option'::
> - This helper supports the option command.
> -
> -'push'::
> - This helper supports the 'push' command.
> -
> -'import'::
> - This helper supports the 'import' command.
> +The following capabilities indicate that the remote helper supports
> +the corresponding command with the same name: 'fetch', 'option',
> +'push', 'connect', and 'import'.
This is, indeed, what I was suggesting, although I think it might be more readable like:
'fetch'::
'option'::
'push'::
'connect'::
'import'::
This helper supports the corresponding command with the same name.
But I'm fine with whichever format is most helpful for someone trying to read the document (that is, to you).
-Daniel
*This .sig left intentionally blank*
Ramkumar Ramachandra