Bruno Haible <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Jim Meyering wrote: >> I have found that it is useful to keep the commit log message >> very similar to the ChangeLog entry. > > ... whereas I find it useful to put rationale information into the cvs > commit message. (Because the ChangeLog entry is only supposed to mention > _what_ has changed, not _why_. And a comment in the source code would in > same case - like this one - be cluttering and disturbing.) Where else to > put rationale information?
If the "GNU coding standards" guidelines suggest not to include "why" a change was made in a ChangeLog entry, then it should be corrected. The explanation for why a change has been made is often more important than what has been done to solve the problem. If you want to add *more* information to the commit log, that's fine, but at least when it's a file that I maintain, please don't put less in the commit log than what's in the ChangeLog. I found the "ANSI C!" comment to be so terse that it was nearly useless. Also, it didn't mention which function was affected. Obviously this isn't a big deal for such a small change. I just want to make sure it won't happen again, later, with a more consequential change.
