If you are scripting its easier to use svn cat to get the data of
interest and diff it. (Looking forward to a fix for #1361 to avoid
hacking into .svn/text_base).
This is especially true in a svn GUI app. I only use svn diff to
make patch files personally.
Barry
At 26-02-2004 16:43, Julian Foad wrote:
>Some notes on book updates needed, and issue tracking:
>
>C. Michael Pilato wrote:
>>solo turn <soloturn99@yahoo.com> writes:
>>
>>>i was not able to find the description of how to use a visual diff
>>>program in subversion any more (book, svn help diff). i just entered
>>>the path into the "config" file.
>>>
>>>but:
>>>- how can i use another visual diff program (mine says it does not
>>> know -u switch)?
>>You might have to write a script that wraps your visual diff program,
>>ignores a -u parameter, and add any params your diff program needs.
>
>And ignores or handles the two "-L" options that specify the friendly
>names of the files.
>
>Note that any option string specified with "-x", including an empty
>string, will replace the "-u" that is passed by default, but there is no
>way of altering the "-L" options.
>
>We need to describe this in the book, specifying the syntax and giving
>example scripts for different platforms. And the "diff3" stuff. The
>relevant parts of the book are:
>
> Chapter 3, footnote 3.
> svn-ch-7-sect-1.3.2 "Config": diff-cmd, diff3-cmd, diff3-has-program-arg.
> svn-ch-9-sect-1.1 "svn Switches": --diff-cmd, --diff3-cmd, --extensions.
> The reference entry for "svn diff".
>
>(I still don't understand the "diff3-has-program-arg" config option.)
>
>We also need to try to make the use of an external "diff" program more
>user-friendly in the future, somehow. I think there's an issue open for it.
>
>
>>>- how can i do a binary compare? even if the diff program supports
>>> it, subversion says "no, we don't do that" before even calling the
>>> diff program
>>Hm. That's a good point. I suppose you can't.
>
>This deserves a separate issue in the tracker. I would call it a defect,
>because I think we have accidentally prevented some intended functionality.
>
>
>>>- is there a difference between a diff for viewing changes (the
>>> user), and a diff for sending changes to the server?
>>The diffs sent to and from the server are binary diffs -- not
>>contextual, human-readable ones.
>
>And the handling of differences sent to and from the sever (known as
>"deltas") is completely separate from the generation of diffs by the
>client program (internally or externally) for the user to see. The delta
>format and handling is the same for all files, and cannot be changed by
>the user. This is not really explained in the book; there is just a note
>under "Subversion's Features: Consistent data handling". A user who
>configures an external "diff" program might well worry about the impact on
>commits and updates.
>
>- Julian
>
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Received on Fri Feb 27 20:53:18 2004