Collaboration (was Re: [webkit-dev] Pulling together on WebKit Mobile)

[Mike Emmel]

Then make it SVN I don't care.

If git is that big of a hurdle then create a collaboration are using SVN.

I did not mean to get into a git vs svn match.  Git just seemed to me to
be a better choice for the type of branching and merging and needed for a
collaboration area.

SVN, cvs rcs, sccs anything is better than nothing.

Right now we have nothing.




On Jan 11, 2008 11:51 PM, Mark Rowe <mrowe at apple.com> wrote:
>
>
> On 12/01/2008, at 18:13, Mike Emmel wrote:
>
> Webkit is a fairly sophisticated piece of code using git for daily
> development is
> trivial. I'd expect any developer who was collaborating on webkit would also
> be
> capable of learning git.
>
> Something as simple as this is sufficient.
>
> http://zrusin.blogspot.com/2007/09/git-cheat-sheet.html
>
> Or maybe even this ?
>
> http://trac.webkit.org/projects/webkit/wiki/UsingGitWithWebKit
>
> I've worked with a number of people that have been interested in
> experimenting with Git for use with WebKit.  The feedback I have received
> from the majority of them is that git is much less friendly to use than
> Subversion, and that the documentation is hard to follow for new users.  It
> does have its benefits once you understand how to use it, but it has a hell
> of a learning curve before you get to that point.
>
>
>
> I've got other small projects I'd like to share with others before
>
> they are ready to submit to the mainline.
>
> And more important if others are interested I'd like to see what they
>
> are working on without having to discover
>
> git repos scattered randomly about the internet.
>
> A minimal-effort solution could be to use <http://repo.or.cz/> ,and
> create a wiki page to catalogue the locations of git repositories that
> other developers are using.  A quick glance shows that Holger has a
> repository on repo.or.cz, and there appears to be a GNUstep port
> hosted there too.  As best I can tell, this light-weight approach
> would fulfil your immediate need.
>
>
> I take it you did not look at that repository that carefully.
>
> http://repo.or.cz/w/webbrowser.git
>
> I tried this over a year ago and found that your incorrect in your
> assumptions about the suitability.
>
> If you're going to write off all possible solutions except the one you have
> set your mind on then I feel this discussion is not going to get very far.
>
>
>
> Why wait your now officially supporting git via svn tracking.
> A clone server that allows developer to create common working areas
> is a small step. I'd say you have already done most of the work.
> I'd suspect that members of the open source community would be willing
> to help with git issues if they arise. Also the tool is used for a lot of
> large
> open source projects most if not all of opendesktop.org is under git.
> And I'd say that X11 development alone is at least as complex as webkit
> not to mention linux kernel development.  Given that you already support a
> git
> server and that large open source projects are successfully using git
> I think the
> argument your making is weak at best.
>
> We clearly have different definitions of "support".  git.webkit.org provides
> a git-svn mirror.  However, working with that mirror is left up to the end
> user.  We provide no documentation for it or expectations that all our tools
> will function correctly.
>
> You also appear to be under the impression that because a given tool is used
> by another project it must be suitable for adoption by WebKit.  The projects
> you mention have different development models, processes and supported
> platforms that may make the tool more suitable for them.
>
>
> Another immediate need is if you did this I'd like to ask Pleyo to
> move there development over
> to this new open git server. Pleyo has done some fairly innovative
> work but they have diverged
> from the main tree and it would take time and effort to take some of
> there ideas and adopt them
> to the mainline code base. I'm not speaking for Pleyo but its a shame
> that their work has no easy
> way to make it back into the mainline development tree.
>
> As far as I am aware they have made little effort to contribute changes
> back.  Pleyo has been more than willing to merge changes from trunk WebKit,
> or even unfinished patches in Bugzilla, so claiming they need git to make
> submitting changes possible feels very much like blaming the tools for a
> social problem.
>
>
> Your webkit ports list has none of this work listed.
>
> http://trac.webkit.org/projects/webkit/wiki
>
> It's a wiki.  I would encourage you to add info about these projects.
>
>
> Your QT port does not have the git working repository linked in a
> obvious manner if at all.
>
> http://trac.webkit.org/projects/webkit/wiki/QtWebKit
>
> Sure it does: click "Information for Contributors".
>
>
> I see no reason to have this stuff scattered across the internet.  Why
> can't webkit.org offer
> to host these ports ?
>
> I have already outlined the reasons why *I* feel it is premature for the
> WebKit project to do this at this time.  If you feel strongly about this, I
> would suggest you trade talk for action and improve the git compatibility of
> our tools, document processes for working with git against WebKit, and
> investigate precisely how your ideal result would work (what infrastructure
> would be needed, what workflow should be used, what changes to tools this
> would require).
>
> Simply dismissing the issues that I raised does nothing to address them.
>
> - Mark
>
>