On Tue, Jun 06, 2023 at 08:54:16AM +0900, Junio C Hamano wrote: > Phillip Wood <phillip.wood123@xxxxxxxxx> writes: > > >> Instead, introduce a new option `-Z` that switches to NUL-delimited > >> input and output. The old `-z` option is marked as deprecated with a > >> hint that its output may become unparsable. > > > > The commit message explains the problem well, I agree adding a new > > option is the cleanest solution. > > > >... > >> @@ -246,6 +246,12 @@ respectively print: > >> -z:: > >> Only meaningful with `--batch`, `--batch-check`, or > >> `--batch-command`; input is NUL-delimited instead of > >> + newline-delimited. This option is deprecated in favor of > >> + `-Z` as the output can otherwise be ambiguous. > >> + > >> +-Z:: > >> + Only meaningful with `--batch`, `--batch-check`, or > >> + `--batch-command`; input and output is NUL-delimited instead of > >> newline-delimited. > > > > The documentation changes look good. I wonder if we should put the > > documentation for "-Z" above "-z" so users see the preferred option > > first. > > Hmph, I expected "-z" and "-Z" to be orthogonal, the former > controlling how input records are delimited, the latter controlling > how output records are delimited, as it usually is a good idea to > keep things that could be orthogonal to be orthogonal to avoid > unnecessarily robbing users flexibility. "-Z is a new way that is > preferred over -z" was something I did not expect, actually. > > I am not outright rejecting such a deliberately limiting design, but > I'll have to think about it a bit. Well, the way I see it we shouldn't have ever decoupled the input and output format, and I consider it a bug that `-z` did as it makes it unusable with arbitrary input. So I'd rather be helping the user of these modes to do the right thing and NUL-delimit both input and output than running into these edge cases later down the road. That being said I'd be fine to change this series to mean "-Z changes stdout" if you insist. In that case we should be pointing out in our documentation that "You should never use `-z` without `-Z` when you process arbitrary input". Patrick
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