doing when they write "Signed-off-by" line.
But the patch submission requirements are a lot more relaxed
-here, because the core GIT is thousand times smaller ;-). So
-here is only the relevant bits.
+here on the technical/contents front, because the core GIT is
+thousand times smaller ;-). So here is only the relevant bits.
(1) Make separate commits for logically separate changes.
Describe the technical detail of the change(s).
-If your description starts to get long, that's a sign that you
+If your description starts to get too long, that's a sign that you
probably need to split up your commit to finer grained pieces.
+Oh, another thing. I am picky about whitespaces. Make sure your
+changes do not trigger errors with the sample pre-commit hook shipped
+in templates/hooks--pre-commit.
-(2) Generate your patch using git/cogito out of your commits.
-git diff tools generate unidiff which is the preferred format.
+(2) Generate your patch using git tools out of your commits.
+
+git based diff tools (git, Cogito, and StGIT included) generate
+unidiff which is the preferred format.
+
You do not have to be afraid to use -M option to "git diff" or
"git format-patch", if your patch involves file renames. The
receiving end can handle them just fine.
which do not belong in a patch submission. Make sure to review
your patch after generating it, to ensure accuracy. Before
sending out, please make sure it cleanly applies to the "master"
-branch head.
+branch head. If you are preparing a work based on "next" branch,
+that is fine, but please mark it as such.
(3) Sending your patches.
-People on the git mailing list needs to be able to read and
+People on the git mailing list need to be able to read and
comment on the changes you are submitting. It is important for
a developer to be able to "quote" your changes, using standard
e-mail tools, so that they may comment on specific portions of
-your code. For this reason, all patches should be submitting
-e-mail "inline". WARNING: Be wary of your MUAs word-wrap
-corrupting your patch. Do not cut-n-paste your patch.
+your code. For this reason, all patches should be submitted
+"inline". WARNING: Be wary of your MUAs word-wrap
+corrupting your patch. Do not cut-n-paste your patch; you can
+lose tabs that way if you are not careful.
-It is common convention to prefix your subject line with
+It is a common convention to prefix your subject line with
[PATCH]. This lets people easily distinguish patches from other
e-mail discussions.
is trivially correct or after the list reached a consensus, send
it "To:" the maintainer and optionally "cc:" the list.
+Also note that your maintainer does not actively involve himself in
+maintaining what are in contrib/ hierarchy. When you send fixes and
+enhancements to them, do not forget to "cc: " the person who primarily
+worked on that hierarchy in contrib/.
-(6) Sign your work
+
+(4) Sign your work
To improve tracking of who did what, we've borrowed the
"sign-off" procedure from the Linux kernel project on patches
Signed-off-by: Random J Developer <random@developer.example.org>
+This line can be automatically added by git if you run the git-commit
+command with the -s option.
+
Some people also put extra tags at the end. They'll just be ignored for
now, but you can do this to mark internal company procedures or just
point out some special detail about the sign-off.
The following Thunderbird extensions are needed:
AboutConfig 0.5
http://aboutconfig.mozdev.org/
- External Editor 0.5.4
- http://extensionroom.mozdev.org/more-info/exteditor
+ External Editor 0.7.2
+ http://globs.org/articles.php?lng=en&pg=8
1) Prepare the patch as a text file using your method of choice.