Re: [Qemu-devel] [PATCH] get_maintainer.pl: Default to --no-git-fallback

["Michael S. Tsirkin" <mst@redhat.com>]

On Wed, Oct 22, 2014 at 10:03:53AM +0200, Markus Armbruster wrote:
> "Michael S. Tsirkin" <mst@redhat.com> writes:
> 
> > On Wed, Oct 22, 2014 at 09:01:24AM +0200, Markus Armbruster wrote:
> >> "Michael S. Tsirkin" <mst@redhat.com> writes:
> >> 
> >> > On Tue, Oct 21, 2014 at 03:34:46PM +0200, Markus Armbruster wrote:
> >> >> Paolo Bonzini <pbonzini@redhat.com> writes:
> >> >> 
> >> >> > On 10/20/2014 04:15 PM, Michael S. Tsirkin wrote:
> >> >> >> What do you want to happen in this case?
> >> >> >> Won't this cause even more patches to fall to the floor?
> >> >> >>
> >> >> >> The benefit seems marginal, the risk high.
> >> >> >
> >> >> > I agree with Michael.
> >> >> >
> >> >> > Can we detect if get_maintainer.pl is invoked as a cccmd, and in this
> >> >> > case default to --no-git-fallback?  If it is invoked manually, I would
> >> >> > like to show the committers (I will then cherry pick the right ones).
> >> >> 
> >> >> I don't like context-sensitive defaults.  Too much magic.
> >> >>
> >> >> What about this: if get_maintainer.pl comes up empty, it points you to
> >> >> --git-fallback.
> >> >
> >> > This is exactly what it's doing now :)
> >> 
> >> Nope.  This is what it's doing now:
> >> 
> >>     $ scripts/get_maintainer.pl -f util/cutils.c
> >>     Luiz Capitulino <lcapitulino@redhat.com> (commit_signer:1/2=50%)
> >>     Eric Blake <eblake@redhat.com> (commit_signer:1/2=50%)
> >>     Alexey Kardashevskiy <aik@ozlabs.ru> (commit_signer:1/2=50%)
> >>     Laszlo Ersek <lersek@redhat.com> (commit_signer:1/2=50%)
> >>     Amit Shah <amit.shah@redhat.com> (commit_signer:1/2=50%)
> >> 
> >> A sufficiently seasoned contributor will spot the "commit_signer" tags,
> >> and the output as a hint to find people to copy.  In this particular
> >> case, he'll recognize the hint is useless.  Maybe he'll try something
> >> like --git-since 2010 or --git-blame then.  I'd just peruse git-log.
> >> 
> >> A less seasoned contributor will blindly copy all five.
> >
> > I give up. What's the correct answer?
> > I frankly don't know whom should one copy on this file.
> > Fabrice?
> 
> Fabrice would be a textbook example of a useless cc.
> 
> I'd pick based on the patch's contents.  For instance, if it fixes a
> function that is used by block stuff only, try copying block
> maintainers.  You get the idea.  It's an art, not something a dumb
> script can do.
> 
> An inexperienced contributor probably won't be able to find out whom to
> copy here.  Making him send out five mostly useless copies is not a
> solution.

Maybe disable fallback just for utils:

+UTIL
+M: qemu-devel@nongnu.org
+S: Odd Fixes
+F: util/

> Don proposed adding a catchall maintainer, and Peter refined
> it to qemu-unmaintained@...  This could serve as a formal cry "I have no
> idea who could review this, please help me".
> 
> [...]

The list is a good idea. But I'd like a flag to avoid adding that
automatically. Call it --expert or whatever. So need to write some
code in get_maintainer.

-- 
MST