Re: GNU-style ChangeLog merge driver for Git

[Bruno Haible]

Micah Cowan wrote:
> Are you claiming that people who are capable of fetching the sources
> with "git clone" will be incapable of "git log"?

Most of them, yes, sure. The "git clone" command is shown in the
homepage <http://www.gnu.org/software/gnulib/> and in gnulib's README.
Millions of people can use it without prerequisite knowledge. The
"git log" command OTOH is only available to people familiar with git.

The web interface for the history is also usable without prerequisite
knowledge; but it is not searchable.

Whereas the ChangeLog can be used with just a text editor, no knowledge,
and is searchable.

> maintaining ChangeLogs is redundant work, when you're already entering
> the very same information into the version control system.

Please place yourself at the position of the user who builds and runs a
program, not the developer. If all packages have different ways of configuring
the package, of showing version history, of listing the dependencies, etc.
building packages for one's own use is too much of a frustrating experience.
This is why a unified 'configure' invocation scheme was needed; this is also
why a unified view of the version history is needed.

Bruno