RE: Re: Help with checkin hook

> On Wed, Aug 13, 2008 at 2:05 PM, Michael Maxwell
> <mmaxwell_at_casl.umd.edu> wrote:
> >> The problem with keyword expansion comes when you do diffs and
> merges.
> >
> > Since svn has its own built-in diff, why can't it do a diff (and merge) with
> unexpanded keywords?
>
> For the same reason why CVS and RCS -- which both by expand keywords
> by default-- can't ignore the differences between expanded keywords.

I don't understand: CVS and RCS don't have their own built-in diff programs; svn does. It could therefore dump the two versions of some file that it's comparing to some place in /tmp or wherever (as I would guess it already does) with the *unexpanded* keywords, and run its diff over those versions.

> Keyword expansion is really more trouble than it's worth.

That's a matter of opinion.

> ...there are better way of marking what revision your
> customer is using than hundreds of keyword expanded revision numbers.

Who said anything about hundreds? What about one? Since svn (unlike RCS) uses a single numbering scheme for all files, it could assign a single number to the expanded keyword.

   Mike Maxwell
   CASL/ U Md
Received on 2008-08-13 20:57:58 CEST