Write yourself a Git (2018) • Hacker News Board

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#41

Post by rezeroed » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:25 PM UTC

cabalamat wrote: post #29

I have an admission to make: I don't understand git. By this I mean I have a few simple commands I use (status/add/commit/push/pull) and if I try to do anything more complicated it always ends up with lots of complex error messages that I don't understand and me nuking the repository and starting again. So I think: there must be a better way. I have often thought about implementing a VCS. The idea behind one doesn't…

I'm not much better. I knew SVN inside out. I've read up on git internals, poked around with them, but eventually forget it all because 99% of the time I only use the same five commands. It's a real iceberg, Pareto principle piece of software for me.

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#42

Post by sransara » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:26 PM UTC

Thanks for sharing. I too agree on this: "... Git is complex is, in my opinion, a misconception... But maybe what makes Git the most confusing is the extreme simplicity and power of its core model. The combination of core simplicity and powerful applications often makes thing really hard to grasp..."

If I may do a self plug, I had recently written a note on "Build yourself a DVCS (just like Git)"[0]. The note is an effort on discussing reasoning for design decisions of the Git internals, while conceptually building a Git step by step.

[0] https://s.ransara.xyz/notes/2019/build-yourself-a-distribute...

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#43

Post by asdkhadsj » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:31 PM UTC

On the note of Git being difficult, I'm really curious to see if Pijul[1] ends up being easier to understand than Git.

[1]: https://pijul.org

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#44

Post by nukeop » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:42 PM UTC

If you find these kinds of "build your own X" articles interesting, there's a repo on Github that aggregates them, sorted in various categories:

https://github.com/danistefanovic/build-your-own-x

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#45

Post by peteradio » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:51 PM UTC

Jupe wrote: post #40

driusan wrote: post #36

Having written my own git client, I can tell you that "the most complicated part will be the command-line arguments parsing logic" doesn't go away. I wouldn't be surprised to wake up one day and find someone published a proof that NP != P, and the proof involved trying to parse the git command line.

Case in point: https://git-man-page-generator.lokaltog.net/ :)

lol --mumble-hire-file

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#46

Post by rsp1984 » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:01 PM UTC

cabalamat wrote: post #29

I have an admission to make: I don't understand git. By this I mean I have a few simple commands I use (status/add/commit/push/pull) and if I try to do anything more complicated it always ends up with lots of complex error messages that I don't understand and me nuking the repository and starting again. So I think: there must be a better way. I have often thought about implementing a VCS. The idea behind one doesn't…

Just curious: Have you tried any of the git GUIs out there? There are many good ones: Fork, Git Tower, GitX-dev.

I guess I would be lost as well just using the command line.

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#47

Post by js2 » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:07 PM UTC

cabalamat wrote: post #29

I have an admission to make: I don't understand git. By this I mean I have a few simple commands I use (status/add/commit/push/pull) and if I try to do anything more complicated it always ends up with lots of complex error messages that I don't understand and me nuking the repository and starting again. So I think: there must be a better way. I have often thought about implementing a VCS. The idea behind one doesn't…

Perhaps the Git Parable will help:

http://tom.preston-werner.com/2009/05/19/the-git-parable.htm...

To provide an alternate viewpoint, I have never had trouble with Git. I’m a bottom-up how-does-this-thing-work sort of person so when I first started using Git, I sought to understand how it worked. That part of Git is pretty easy to understand. Knowing that made its CLI a lot easier to grok. Of course, at the time I was having to use ClearCase at work and Subversion on the side so Git, IMO, was a vast improvement to either of those tools.

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#48

Post by Vogtinator » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:11 PM UTC

ansible wrote: post #18

It might be fun do try this in Rust as well.

Or in Haskell. Or in C++.

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#49

Post by driusan » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:11 PM UTC

Jupe wrote: post #40

driusan wrote: post #36

Having written my own git client, I can tell you that "the most complicated part will be the command-line arguments parsing logic" doesn't go away. I wouldn't be surprised to wake up one day and find someone published a proof that NP != P, and the proof involved trying to parse the git command line.

Case in point: https://git-man-page-generator.lokaltog.net/ :)

Doesn't seem that realistic. I reloaded a bunch of times, and didn't get a single one where the same command can mean 3 different context-sensitive things that each take different arguments but are all named the same command.

Re: Write yourself a Git (2018)

#50

Post by elviejo » Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:18 PM UTC

cabalamat wrote: post #29

I have an admission to make: I don't understand git. By this I mean I have a few simple commands I use (status/add/commit/push/pull) and if I try to do anything more complicated it always ends up with lots of complex error messages that I don't understand and me nuking the repository and starting again. So I think: there must be a better way. I have often thought about implementing a VCS. The idea behind one doesn't…

I'm in the same boat. I could teach subversion in 1 hour and people would get it. I can't teach git in a whole week. So in the end my students use the same 5 commands.