[webkit-dev] Patch process - let's make it better

[Chris Marrin]

On Jul 10, 2009, at 3:55 PM, Maciej Stachowiak wrote:

> Hi everyone,
>
> One common topic for discussion has been how to make our process  
> around patch submission better. As the project grows, it's becoming  
> more important for this process to work really smoothly, and we are  
> seeing some breakdowns. I've been doing a lot of thinking about  
> this, and discussion with some project old hands. I think the right  
> way to tackle this is to identify the process problems, and make  
> sure we address each one. I'd also like to start by fixing the  
> problems that can be addressed without making major wholesale tools  
> changes first, then look at the bigger changes. Here are my thoughts  
> on the steps in the lifecycle of a patch:
>
>
> === 1) Submitting the patch ===
>
> Steps:
> 1.1) File a bug if there isn't one already.
> 1.2) Put the bug number in your ChangeLog entry.

Maybe it's because I'm a noob and there is a better way, but one of  
the most annoying things about the patch process is the need to add  
Changelog entries. It's not hard to create a Changelog entry (given  
the existance of prepareChangelog). The annoying part is the fact that  
I ALWAYS get conflicts in at least one Changelog file when I try to  
check in. I have to fix these by hand, do svn resolved, and try to  
check in again. Assuming someone hasn't checked something in under me  
in the 2 minutes it took me to fix the changelogs, (which has happened  
a couple of times), I can successfully commit.

This isn't THAT big of a deal, but it is annoying. And I'm not sure  
why we need changelogs when we have a complete log of every checkin  
from svn anyway? Maybe it would be better to do away with Changelogs  
and just put stricter controls on what's in a commit message.

-----
~Chris
cmarrin at apple.com