From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: =?utf-8?Q?=C3=93scar_Fuentes?= Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: What have the Romans done for us? (Bazaar) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:38:10 +0200 Message-ID: <87zl1fhubx.fsf@telefonica.net> References: <20100405145637.GA3248@muc.de> NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii X-Trace: dough.gmane.org 1270672719 14739 80.91.229.12 (7 Apr 2010 20:38:39 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@dough.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 7 Apr 2010 20:38:39 +0000 (UTC) To: emacs-devel@gnu.org Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Wed Apr 07 22:38:37 2010 Return-path: Envelope-to: ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1Nzc1F-00045t-2R for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:38:37 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1]:60254 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1Nzc1E-0002Xp-IF for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:38:36 -0400 Original-Received: from mailman by lists.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1Nzc19-0002XT-2O for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:38:31 -0400 Original-Received: from [140.186.70.92] (port=40334 helo=eggs.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1Nzc17-0002XJ-MF for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:38:30 -0400 Original-Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1Nzc14-0000aF-5b for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:38:29 -0400 Original-Received: from lo.gmane.org ([80.91.229.12]:56661) by eggs.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1Nzc12-0000Zs-NJ for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:38:26 -0400 Original-Received: from list by lo.gmane.org with local (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1Nzc0y-00040K-4G for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:38:20 +0200 Original-Received: from 226.red-81-33-105.dynamicip.rima-tde.net ([81.33.105.226]) by main.gmane.org with esmtp (Gmexim 0.1 (Debian)) id 1AlnuQ-0007hv-00 for ; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:38:20 +0200 Original-Received: from ofv by 226.red-81-33-105.dynamicip.rima-tde.net with local (Gmexim 0.1 (Debian)) id 1AlnuQ-0007hv-00 for ; Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:38:20 +0200 X-Injected-Via-Gmane: http://gmane.org/ Original-Lines: 48 Original-X-Complaints-To: usenet@dough.gmane.org X-Gmane-NNTP-Posting-Host: 226.red-81-33-105.dynamicip.rima-tde.net User-Agent: Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/24.0.50 (gnu/linux) Cancel-Lock: sha1:y6A0xDVi/RjSPu0ZPxd1fyvRoIA= X-detected-operating-system: by eggs.gnu.org: GNU/Linux 2.6 (newer, 3) X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:123334 Archived-At: Alan Mackenzie writes: [snip] > So, yes, bzr is wonderful, because it's a DISTRIBUTED VCS, and > distributed VCSs are Good Things. Would somebody please remind me why? Using Distributed Version Control Sytems (dVCSs) supports the goals of the Free Software movement. Free Software grants the user the right to access the source code so he can study it. Just as producing well written source reinforces this right, giving easy access to the VC history does likewise. Easy access here means local access, so the user can perform whatever operation he pleases without the constraints of a remote server. Free Software grants the user the right to modify the source code. Distributed VCs makes this much easier, as it is trivial to create your personal fork (branch) and integrate changes from upstream. Compare this with maintaining sets of patches. Free Software means granting the user the right to re-distribute his modified software. With a dVCS, publishing your personal branch is almost as easy as putting a tarball for download, but with the added advantage for your users of having an easy method for knowing exactly how your modified source differs from the master project, and providing the capability of easily picking specific changes and integrating them on other forks or on the original project, which includes allowing your users the capability of basing their changes on top of yours (i.e. by forking your source code). Thus dVCSs are excellent tools for administering your local changes and sharing them with the community. This is a strong encouragement for people who is considering start hacking on some piece of software. Implicit conveniences: If the master project vanishes, you can resurrect it in no-time without missing a bit of development history. If you wish to collaborate with others developing a fork (branch) of the original project, dVCSs makes this trivial. If you wish to contribute your changes to the original project, dVCSs makes this substantially easier than previous tools. IMO GNU should recommend using Distributed Version Control Systems to all developers working on Free Software.