The big thing (for some people) that you are missing with git is that it makes working with branches really easy. In my first job we used SVN and maintaining separate branches was a pain in the ass, to the point where we only did it for a release branch, while with git it’s pretty trivial to the point where people use them all the time even when working locally only.
I do agree that git’s documentation and UX for basic operations is not as nice as SVN.
edit: Also agree about the signalling part to some extent. I do feel like there’s a tendency among some programmers to gravitate toward the most complex plausible technology in order to show how smart they are.
If you really need to branch then svn is the wrong tool to use, because branching makes a lot more sense for distributed systems. For the repositories I use svn for, I never once have had to branch in any complicated way. If I needed to branch in a significant way, I’d use git or hg. The most I’ve done is “branching” a file by duplicating it, and then later merging in the changes with a graphical diff tool. At this level, git is no easier or harder than svn, though you might consider this approach to be sloppier than git’s approach.
Talking to some git people gives me the impression that they branch way more often than is necessary, though. Maybe if you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Maybe if you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Those grapes are probably sour anyway.
edit: To make a less snarky contribution, there’s always a difficult balance between “those people are doing something that seems weird to me, I should probably just ignore them and go my own way” vs “if smart people are doing something that seems weird, it’s probably for a good reason, maybe I should learn it”.
If you’re suggesting that I say I don’t think branching is useful because I can’t do it well in svn, or something like that, then I can’t say much other than that you’re mistaken. If you’re not suggesting this, please clarify.
Yes, I have learned about branching workflows. I decided that they don’t make sense for most of my repositories. For example, the repository I commit most often to is primarily a collection of text outlines on a variety of subjects. How would a branching workflow help me here? It wouldn’t. In the 3 years I’ve been using this repository, branching never seemed like a good idea. Branching just seems like extra friction in the process. My impression is that many git people probably would branch in this case, and I don’t understand what benefits they get from that. If you’re aware of any, I’m listening.
The larger project my PhD is a part of uses git with a pretty standard git workflow, which I agree makes sense for the project. My claims are that large software projects have different requirements than small software/documentation projects, and that you might find different tools to be useful in each case.
Edit: If you thought the hammer sentence was snark, sorry for that. It was my attempt to explain why some people who use git might branch more often than is needed.
If you don’t need git’s features it’s fine not to use it. I just brought up branching because you left it out of your comparison, but IIRC it’s the main reason git was even created.
The big thing (for some people) that you are missing with git is that it makes working with branches really easy. In my first job we used SVN and maintaining separate branches was a pain in the ass, to the point where we only did it for a release branch, while with git it’s pretty trivial to the point where people use them all the time even when working locally only.
I do agree that git’s documentation and UX for basic operations is not as nice as SVN.
edit: Also agree about the signalling part to some extent. I do feel like there’s a tendency among some programmers to gravitate toward the most complex plausible technology in order to show how smart they are.
If you really need to branch then svn is the wrong tool to use, because branching makes a lot more sense for distributed systems. For the repositories I use svn for, I never once have had to branch in any complicated way. If I needed to branch in a significant way, I’d use git or hg. The most I’ve done is “branching” a file by duplicating it, and then later merging in the changes with a graphical diff tool. At this level, git is no easier or harder than svn, though you might consider this approach to be sloppier than git’s approach.
Talking to some git people gives me the impression that they branch way more often than is necessary, though. Maybe if you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Those grapes are probably sour anyway.
edit: To make a less snarky contribution, there’s always a difficult balance between “those people are doing something that seems weird to me, I should probably just ignore them and go my own way” vs “if smart people are doing something that seems weird, it’s probably for a good reason, maybe I should learn it”.
If you’re suggesting that I say I don’t think branching is useful because I can’t do it well in svn, or something like that, then I can’t say much other than that you’re mistaken. If you’re not suggesting this, please clarify.
Yes, I have learned about branching workflows. I decided that they don’t make sense for most of my repositories. For example, the repository I commit most often to is primarily a collection of text outlines on a variety of subjects. How would a branching workflow help me here? It wouldn’t. In the 3 years I’ve been using this repository, branching never seemed like a good idea. Branching just seems like extra friction in the process. My impression is that many git people probably would branch in this case, and I don’t understand what benefits they get from that. If you’re aware of any, I’m listening.
The larger project my PhD is a part of uses git with a pretty standard git workflow, which I agree makes sense for the project. My claims are that large software projects have different requirements than small software/documentation projects, and that you might find different tools to be useful in each case.
Edit: If you thought the hammer sentence was snark, sorry for that. It was my attempt to explain why some people who use git might branch more often than is needed.
If you don’t need git’s features it’s fine not to use it. I just brought up branching because you left it out of your comparison, but IIRC it’s the main reason git was even created.