[darcs-users] Random rant about --no-set-default

[Matthias Kilian]

On Sun, Jan 04, 2009 at 09:12:58PM +0000, Eric Kow wrote:
> > Wouldn't it be more sane to *never* touch the default repo by
> > default, remove that --no-set-default option, and add instead the
> > opposite (--set-default)? In other words, --no-set-default should
> > be the default IMHO.
> 
> Both options are there.  It's just a question of what should be the
> right default.  If you think it's just you, you could set ALL
> no-set-default in your ${HOME}/.darcs/defaults.

I'll certainly do it for now ;-)

> If you think this is a matter for all users (and I think would agree
> with you if you did), then it is likely a good idea to hold a debate
> on this list, making sure to summarise the results on
>   http://wiki.darcs.net/index.html/DefaultSwitches

Ok, some reasons why pushing to or pulling from a repository different
than the default one shouldn't change the default by default:[1]

- pulling (cherrypicking) from http://really.weird.stuff, because
  they may have some really cool stuff. You certainly don't want
  to let darcs set your default repository to http://really.weird.stuff
  in this case.

- pushing to http://probably.good.but.still.unfinished (a "private"
  (a private repository you want to save your own scratch work
  into). If you're usually pulling from some upstream repository,
  the current behaviour would immediately cut you off upstream
  changes (because suddenly you always pull from your scratch
  repository).

- mirroring. you're running a cronjob that pulls upstream patches every
  few hours, and you've a local working area that pulls from your
  mirror. Now, if you want to get some exciting new patches from
  upstream into your local working area quickly, you don't want to
  change the default repository from your mirror to upstream. I.e.,
  initially you ran

	$ darcs get http://some.mirror

  and pull with just

	$ darcs pull

  to get new patches from the mirror, but after a

	$ darcs pull http://upstream

  your default repository is currently changed from http://some.mirror
  to http://upstream.


> the default.  I also think that if we were to mess around with the
> defaults, we could maybe consider having a big bang changeover of the
> default switches in darcs 2.3.

With a huge warning sign attached to the release notes ;-)

Ciao,
	Kili

[1] Three occurences of the word "default" in a single line.
    See also the signature of this mail.

-- 
default, n.:
	[Possibly from Black English "De fault wid dis system is you,
mon."] The vain attempt to avoid errors by inactivity.  "Nothing will
come of nothing: speak again." -- King Lear.
		-- Stan Kelly-Bootle, "The Devil's DP Dictionary"