Subject: Re: src/dist is a *bad* idea
To: Ignatios Souvatzis <is@jocelyn.rhein.de>
From: None <erh@nimenees.com>
List: current-users
Date: 12/16/1999 01:35:49
On Thu, Dec 16, 1999 at 07:36:46AM +0100, Ignatios Souvatzis wrote:
> And yes, NetBSD developers do this all the time. Including splitting 
> a file into two, retaining the original change history in both copies.
> 
> It involves removing all tags from the target copies that where not there
> in the original. Possibly even marking original versions "dead" or something,
> but as we don't operate on dates in NetBSD, but rather on revision tags,
> we don't do that normally.
Actually yes we do.  For clarification here's an outline of what
the scripts do:
	Check for an existing rcs file, possibly in the Attic.
		(If there is one it bails.)
	Strip all symbolic tags.  (using an awk script)
	Mark all revisions dead.  (script+rcs)
	Create a new non-dead revision (co/ci)
	Do a "cvs rm" on the original file.

This is certainly not ideal, but it works pretty well within the current
limitations of cvs.  Improvements?  Perhaps teach cvs about a "magic"
revision that would point back to the rest of the history.  If not that,
then at least implementing the equivalent of these script within cvs
might be feasable and would help minimize some of the black-magic feel.

eric