Re: git-apply{,mbox,patch} should default to --unidiff-zero

[Adrian Bunk <bunk@stusta.de>]

On Thu, Jul 05, 2007 at 10:41:51PM -0700, Junio C Hamano wrote:
> Linus Torvalds <torvalds@linux-foundation.org> writes:
>...
> > Adrian has a point in that if there are lines to be deleted, that in 
> > itself is context, and then the strict behaviour of "git-apply" is 
> > arguably unnecessaily strict.
> 
> Not really.  That is true, unless you have two identical
> instances of the group of lines being deleted, in which case you
> cannot safely tell which instance is to be removed.
>...

The interesting thing is that you can never safely tell it for any 
amount of context - I've seen patches with three lines of context being 
applied at the wrong place simply because there were several matching 
contexts.

cu
Adrian

-- 

       "Is there not promise of rain?" Ling Tan asked suddenly out
        of the darkness. There had been need of rain for many days.
       "Only a promise," Lao Er said.
                                       Pearl S. Buck - Dragon Seed