Re: Ignore local changes?

[Greg A. Woods]

[ On Wednesday, April 2, 2003 at 11:37:39 (-0600), Wade Williams wrote: ]
> Subject: Re: Ignore local changes?
>
> 
> > Yes there is:  Do not ever modify the CVS controlled file!
> >
> > Always, and only ever, modify a copy of any file if you don't want CVS
> > to see your changes to it!
> >
> > I.e. this is a build system problem, not a CVS problem.
> >
> 
> No, it's not a CVS problem.
> 
> However, CVS could make life easier with this as an option.

No, CVS cannot make this an option.  Anything you suggest would, BY
DEFINITION, subvert all the efforts CVS goes to to try to keep the
integrity of its view of your working directory intact!

If you want to modify a file and you don't want CVS to see those
modifications then you _ABSOLUTELY_MUST_ make those modifications to a
file which CVS does not manage -- e.g. a copy of the file with a new
name that CVS does not see.

If your build system can't easily be adjusted to deal with an
alternative file like this then that's problem with your build system,
not with CVS.  Dealing with alternative files in normal compiled code
development is usually very trivial:

        $ cp file.c local.c
        $ vi local.c
        $ cc -c local.c -o file.o
        $ make

If you can't remember that you've made a special modified version of
file.o then you shouldn't even be thinking of doing what you suggest --
you should just modify file.c directly and learn to more carefully
inspect your changes before you commit them (and of course only commit
those that you really want to commit)!

> I can't imagine I'm the only developer that makes local changes to try 
> something out, but wants to be sure those changes do not end up in the 
> repository.

If that's the way you want to do things then you could make a copy of
your working directory and remove the CVS administrative files and
directories....

However if you want to use CVS to keep track of your changes then you
don't want any easy way to subvert it!

Put a comment in the changed file to remind you not to commit that change!

This is _NOT_ a problem CVS can ever possibly address in any sane and
safe way.

-- 
                                                                Greg A. Woods

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