[darcs-users] Conceptual questions about REPO s

[Jorey Bump]

Sean wrote:
> Hi, I am new to SCM and chose darcs, after much reading and consideration.
> 
> I have never used a SCM system b4, so please be gentle.
> 
> The first thing I need to get my head around, is what to put in a repo ?
> 
> Do I put all of my development code in a single repo, or do I maintain
> different repos for each specific code project ? (Does it matter if
> you end up with 10's or 100's of repos)

I'm also relatively new to SCM and darcs, so I'll share a brief insight:

1. Organize by project.
2. Learn to write a Makefile.

These two points have helped me the most. As you've learned, a customer 
isn't necessarily a single project, it can contain multiple projects or 
participate in a shared project. Think logically about what a project 
actually is, and whether it's unique to the directory you're considering 
to use as a repo. When you view a changelog, what do you want to see? 
For some customers, I can track everything in one repo. For others, I 
need to track each document separately, because I work with different 
authors or departments. If you need to share a repo with an external 
developer, does it only contain files relevant to the project?

Not only is a Makefile a handy tool for creating project-specific 
utilities, it forces you to organize your code sensibly. A Makefile will 
often contain evidence of how organized or fragmented your project is. 
More importantly, it makes it easier to manage.