Re: [Gnome-devtools] gnome-vcs: the start

[Roel <roel lufthansa com>]

There is one more thing that we can make with a gui version control system
that the command line version doesn't have: a graphical representation of
branches and versions of a file. Have a look at tkcvs
(http://www.twobarleycorns.net/tkcvs.html) to see what I mean. It is really
useful, I use it every day because it makes the whole branch thing much
clearer. Another very nice feature of this cvs frontend is it's way it
represents diff's; you can see very fast where the changes between two
versions are, and of what nature they are (added lines, changed lines or
removed lines)
How do you propose to integrate the different cvs systems? With a
configuration file that maps every command to a common command set that can
then be used by gnome-vcs, or with a plugin system wo that C plugins have
to be written to add a control system?

cheers,

roel


On Sun, 05 Nov 2000 15:20:35 Dirk Vangestel wrote:
> Hey,
> 
> I want to start on gnome-vcs, the version control
> component of our beloved development tools.
> I have written down my ideas on the subject, and I
> would apreciate it if everyone could post their
> ideas/comments/criticism. I tink this list can be used
> (since it seems to be almost dead anyway)...
> 
> Dirk
> 
> 
> 
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> gnome-vcs: What and why?
> 
> Almost all projects these days have some kind of version control. Whether
> the project is open source or commercial, version control is present
> everywhere.
> There are different kinds of version control systems available,
> commercial
> or free. Those systems have similar functionality, but the way they work
> is slightly different. Switching regularly between 2 or more system can
> be
> quite confusing.
> Most of the version control systems are based on a command line system,
> although often a graphical user interface is present. Usually they also
> have some kind of integration with a development environment.
> The main idea behind gnome-vcs is to provide a common interface to
> all these version control systems. This interface can then be used in
> different kinds of applications like editors or IDEs. The advantage of
> having a common interface is that a user only has to learn one set of
> commands but still has access to all version control systems.
> Gnome-vcs only provides a programmatical interface. It is not the intent
> to write command-line tools although that might be a useful extension
> later.
> 
> The implementation will be based on a CORBA interface, implemented using
> Bonobo. There are 2 parts to the implementation: a common interface and
> an implementation of this interface for all supported version control
> systems. To test the validity of the interface, 2 very different version
> control systems will be implemented: cvs and ClearCase(1). cvs is a
> widely
> used system in the free software world, while ClearCase is its
> counterpart
> for the commercial software world.
> 
> Details are still sketchy at best, but here goes.
> The common interface is the most important part. It has the following
> functions:
> - Select version control system. Because there can be different version
>   control systems installed on any single system, this function allows a
>   user to select which he wants to use.
> - Connect to vcs. This allows a user to 'log in' to the vcs.
>   For cvs this will be the actual login.
>   For ClearCase this might just be a selection of the vob directory.
> - Connect to project. In a vcs database, there are most likely several
>   projects present. A user has to select which project to connect to.
>   For cvs, the system can check whether the most current version is
> present
>   on the user's system. The user will also be able to select a tag.
>   For ClearCase, the user can edit his configspec so the correct version
> is
>   selected.
> - New project. Using this command, the user can create a new project in
> the
>   vcs database. This will usually just create a directory in the vcs
> database.
> - Check out. This gets a file out of the vcs database and allows a user
> to
>   edit the file.
>   For cvs, this operation probably does nothing, except maybe to check
>   whether the most recent version is present.
>   For ClearCase, the file will be checked out (in the ClearCase meaning).
> - Undo check out. Using this operation, a check out can be cancelled. The
>   changes done to the file will not be incorporated into the vcs
> database.
>   For cvs, this will be a 'release'.
>   For ClearCase, the unco command will be run.
> - Check in. If the changes are to be kept, a file needs to be checked in.
>   It will be stored in the vcs database. The user is asked to provide a
>   log which details the changes he did in the file.
>   For cvs, this will be a commit. Or at least, the file will be marked
>   to be committed. Usually single files are not committed in cvs, which
>   makes this command a bit awkward.
>   For ClearCase, the file will be checked in.
> - Attach label. This command will create a label and put it on all files
>   which are currently active.
>   For cvs, the command will put a tag on the current project.
>   For ClearCase, a label type will be made and it will be put on all
> files.
> - Make branch. This command will make sure that all changes from this
> time
>   on will be put on a branch.
>   For cvs, a branch will be made.
>   For ClearCase, a branch will be made and the configspec will be
> adjusted.
> - Show changes. Allows a user to inspect the changes that have been made
>   to a previous version (commonly known as a diff).
>   For cvs, the diff command will be used.
>   For ClearCase, the diff command will be used.
> - Show change history. A user can add comments when creating a new
> version of
>   a file, and this command shows the comments added to previous versions.
>   For cvs, this will be a 'log'.
>   For ClearCase, this will be a 'lshistory'.
> - Properties. The user can get properties of the project or single files.
>   All labels as well as the currently selected version will be displayed.
>   For cvs, this will be a 'status -v'.
>   For clearcase, this will be a 'des' or 'lsvtree'.
> - Add file to vcs. The user has to manually add a new file to the
> project.
>   For cvs, this will be an 'add'.
>   For ClearCase, this will be an 'mkelem'.
> - Remove file from vcs. The user can choose to removed a file from the
>   vcs database using this command.
>   For cvs, this will be a 'remove'.
>   For ClearCase, this will be a 'rmelem'.
> - Disconnect. Using this command, the user can disconnect from a vcs
> database.
>   For cvs, this will do a logout and probably a commit (if the user wants
> to).
>   For ClearCase, nothing needs to be done.
> 
> (1) ClearCase is a product of Rational Software.
> 
> Dirk Vangestel
> dirk_vangestel yahoo com
> 
> Version 1. Nov 05, 2000.
>