RE: AW: Multiple cvs users in one checkout area

[Zieg, Mark]

> From: Brandon Brinkley [mailto:address@hidden
> 
> In defense of the original poster, a "shared" project is not uncommon.
For
> example, Telelogic's CM Synergy allows for either private projects or
shared
> ones.  I've even worked on projects that used both simultaneously.

Likewise in defense of the poster's concept...I once worked a contract at an
accounting firm in which:

(1) a single "sandbox" was ~150MB;
(2) all work was "required" to be done on a single server with a 6GB drive
(which was mostly full of Sybase data);
(3) there were ~25 developers on the project.

Given the space and resource requirements, under the rules imposed From
Above, multiple sandboxes just weren't an efficient solution.

Instead, what they came up with was a rather clever (and large -- ~80k)
shell script which wrapped RCS and symlinked every non-locally-modified
sandbox file to a common repository instance, and only replaced the symlinks
with actual files when the user indicated an intent to edit one.

Cumbersome, yes, and exactly the sort of thing which a properly-utilized CVS
was designed to obviate.  But we don't all live in a perfect world, and
sometimes must deal with impositions and requirements that deny elegant
solution.

I don't deny that it is worth challenging the requirements, if it seems a
battle which can be won -- but there are also cases where developers must
cede defeat, and simply come up with a "best fit" solution that meets the
customer's request.  That is, after all, what they are paid for.