Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 03:06:13 -0800 From: Peter Wemm <peter@wemm.org> To: Mike Barcroft <mike@FreeBSD.org> Cc: Maxim Sobolev <sobomax@FreeBSD.org>, des@FreeBSD.org, cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org, cvs-all@FreeBSD.org Subject: Re: Meaningless commit messages [was: cvs commit: ports/www/linux-opera Makefile] Message-ID: <20011128110613.5E3073808@overcee.netplex.com.au> In-Reply-To: <20011127163513.A12400@espresso.q9media.com>
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Mike Barcroft wrote:
> Maxim Sobolev <sobomax@FreeBSD.org> writes:
> > On Tue, 27 Nov 2001 09:49:16 -0800 (PST), Dag-Erling Smorgrav wrote:
> > > des 2001/11/27 09:49:16 PST
> > >
> > > Modified files:
> > > www/linux-opera Makefile
> > > Log:
> > > Pander to the backseat drivers.
> >
> > Could you please use more meaningful commit messages? For
> > example it is absolutely impossible to guess what this
> > commit is all about without looking at the diff.
>
> >From the Committers Guide:
> "Do not waste space in the commit messages explaining what you did.
> That is what cvs diff is for. Instead, tell us why you did it."
Well, the guide is over simplifying it. Also, dont forget the previous
paragraph:
<para>Good commit messages are important. They tell others
why you did the changes you did, not just right here and now,
but months or years from now when someone wonders why some
seemingly illogical or inefficient piece of code snuck into
your source file. It is also an invaluable aid to deciding
which changes to MFC and which not to MFC.</para>
I was planning to change the paragraph that you quoted to something like
this:
<para>Commit messages should be clear, concise and provide
a reasonable summary to give an indication of what was
changed and why.</para>
<para>Commit messages should provide enough information to
enable a third party to decide if the change is relevant to
them and if they need to read the change itself.</para>
Cheers,
-Peter
--
Peter Wemm - peter@FreeBSD.org; peter@yahoo-inc.com; peter@netplex.com.au
"All of this is for nothing if we don't go to the stars" - JMS/B5
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