Re: [Quilt-dev] [PATCH] mail-single-patch.diff

[Gary V. Vaughan]

Hi John,

John Vandenberg wrote:
> On 9/18/05, Gary V. Vaughan <address@hidden> wrote:
>>John Vandenberg wrote:
>>>On 9/18/05, Gary V. Vaughan <address@hidden> wrote:
>>>>This patch allows calling quilt mail with a list of patch names
>>>>after the usual arguments, and mails only those patches rather
>>>>than the entire series.  If only a single patch is named then it
>>>>is put into the bady of a single mail (that's what I'm using to
>>>>send this patch)
>>>
>>>This patch makes `mail' the first command to operate on multiple
>>>patches outside of the series.  While I would enjoy being able to send
>>>a single patch, or a sub-series, I don't think quilt should generate
>>>emails that can't be applied on the receiving end.  In other words, in
>>>order to send an adhoc set of patches, `mail' should first verify that
>>>the dependency graph of the selected patches is sane.
>>
>>I disagree: tools shouldn't try to outsmart their users.  If I have
>>100 patches in my series that I posted yesterday, and I've just revised
>>patch 100 as a result of feedback and want to repost the revision, I
>>don't want quilt to post all 100 patches again -- I'm exaggerating but
>>you see my point?
>>
>>Maybe a warning, or requiring a --force argument is reasonable?
> 
> Warnings and --force sounds good.  In order to do introduce
> functionality that uses adhoc sets of patches, we need tools to
> qualify what an adhoc set of patches is: i.e. is it a series, or a
> guarded series, or multiple individual patches that have no
> dependencies.  Then we can warn the user appropriately, and they can
> use --force in an informed manner.

Okay, cool.  That sounds like a good approach.

>>Otherwise, why require users to go around quilt and paste the patches
>>they need to repost into their regular MUA?
> 
> I am not suggesting that quilt mail shouldn't tackle this task.  It
> should.  But please, when it does, it should maintain the sanity of
> the series it sends.  IMO, it should not revert to being just another
> script that can email files, in the hope that eventually someone will
> add the smarts later.

ACK.

>>As it stands mail is
>>mostly useless... all I can do is post my whole series once.  And
>>repost the entire series again when I've added a new patch to it that
>>I want to open for peer review...
> 
> I have no reservations about quilt mail sending a single patch.  For
> multiple patches, why not author a new/temporary series file, verify
> it works, and then use quilt mail.  This could be combined together
> into a single operation.

ACK.

Thanks for the feedback.  I'll add it to my TODO.

Cheers,
        Gary.
-- 
Gary V. Vaughan      ())_.  address@hidden,gnu.org}
Research Scientist   ( '/   http://tkd.kicks-ass.net
GNU Hacker           / )=   http://www.gnu.org/software/libtool
Technical Author   `(_~)_   http://sources.redhat.com/autobook

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