# [PATCH] doc: fill in omitted word

4 messages from 2016-11-04 to 2016-12-09. Participants: Kristoffer Haugsbakk, Junio C Hamano, Jeff King.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/44429

## Kristoffer Haugsbakk, 2016-11-04 21:43

Subject: [PATCH] doc: fill in omitted word
Message-ID: <20161104214357.32477-1-kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/20161104214357.32477-1-kristoffer.haugsbakk%40gmail.com

```
Signed-off-by: Kristoffer Haugsbakk <kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com>
---
 Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt | 2 +-
 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt b/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
index 4546fa0..9860517 100644
--- a/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
+++ b/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ you want to understand Git's internals.
 The core Git is often called "plumbing", with the prettier user
 interfaces on top of it called "porcelain". You may not want to use the
 plumbing directly very often, but it can be good to know what the
-plumbing does for when the porcelain isn't flushing.
+plumbing does for you when the porcelain isn't flushing.
 
 Back when this document was originally written, many porcelain
 commands were shell scripts. For simplicity, it still uses them as
-- 
2.10.2


```

## Junio C Hamano, 2016-11-10 22:07

Subject: Re: [PATCH] doc: fill in omitted word
Message-ID: <xmqqd1i356ql.fsf@gitster.mtv.corp.google.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/xmqqd1i356ql.fsf%40gitster.mtv.corp.google.com
In-Reply-To: <20161104214357.32477-1-kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com>

```
Kristoffer Haugsbakk <kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com> writes:

> Signed-off-by: Kristoffer Haugsbakk <kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com>
> ---
>  Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt | 2 +-
>  1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)
>
> diff --git a/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt b/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
> index 4546fa0..9860517 100644
> --- a/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
> +++ b/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
> @@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ you want to understand Git's internals.
>  The core Git is often called "plumbing", with the prettier user
>  interfaces on top of it called "porcelain". You may not want to use the
>  plumbing directly very often, but it can be good to know what the
> -plumbing does for when the porcelain isn't flushing.
> +plumbing does for you when the porcelain isn't flushing.

I need an English teacher here to help me out, but I think this
changes the meaning of the sentence from what the original author
intended..

The way I've read this statement for the past ten years since it was
written originally at 8c7fa2478e ("Add first cut at a simple git
tutorial.", 2005-05-31) and then slightly reworded at f35ca9ed3e
("tutorial.txt: start describing how to copy repositories",
2005-06-01) is that 

 * there are unfortunate occasions in which the porcelain is not
   flushing, and 

 * the knowledge of what the plumbing does is a good thing to have
   for such occasions.  It will help you figure out what needs to be
   done.

The rewritten text means a very different thing, at least to me.

 * there are things plumbing does for you.

 * the knowledge of what they are helps when the porcelain isn't
   flushing.

Just dropping "for" instead of adding "you" may make it easier to
read, grammatically more correct and retain the original intent
better, I suspect.


```

## Jeff King, 2016-11-10 23:06

Subject: Re: [PATCH] doc: fill in omitted word
Message-ID: <20161110230605.pwgzhai6xhud7pnu@sigill.intra.peff.net>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/20161110230605.pwgzhai6xhud7pnu%40sigill.intra.peff.net
In-Reply-To: <xmqqd1i356ql.fsf@gitster.mtv.corp.google.com>

```
On Thu, Nov 10, 2016 at 02:07:30PM -0800, Junio C Hamano wrote:

> Kristoffer Haugsbakk <kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com> writes:
> 
> > Signed-off-by: Kristoffer Haugsbakk <kristoffer.haugsbakk@gmail.com>
> > ---
> >  Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt | 2 +-
> >  1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)
> >
> > diff --git a/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt b/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
> > index 4546fa0..9860517 100644
> > --- a/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
> > +++ b/Documentation/gitcore-tutorial.txt
> > @@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ you want to understand Git's internals.
> >  The core Git is often called "plumbing", with the prettier user
> >  interfaces on top of it called "porcelain". You may not want to use the
> >  plumbing directly very often, but it can be good to know what the
> > -plumbing does for when the porcelain isn't flushing.
> > +plumbing does for you when the porcelain isn't flushing.
> 
> I need an English teacher here to help me out, but I think this
> changes the meaning of the sentence from what the original author
> intended..

It does. I'd take the original to mean "for the case when", which is
correct (though as you note, just dropping "for" says the same thing
more succinctly).

-Peff

```

## Kristoffer Haugsbakk, 2016-12-09 12:31

Subject: Re: [PATCH] doc: fill in omitted word
Message-ID: <87shpxl1vr.fsf@gmail.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/87shpxl1vr.fsf%40gmail.com
In-Reply-To: <20161110230605.pwgzhai6xhud7pnu@sigill.intra.peff.net>

```

I agree.  Just writing "... what the plumbing does ..." is clearer and
less redundant.

I'll probably be sending a patch series that includes your proposed fix
sometime soon.

-- 
Kristoffer Haugsbakk

```
