Re: Cleaning up git user-interface warts

Junio C Hamano [off-list ref] wrote:

The index is quite central to the way git works at the concept
level, and I think it is doing disservice to the end user to try
hiding it forever from them and failing to do so, rather than
being honest and teaching them the concept upfront.

But me thinking so does not necessarily mean you are forbidden
from trying.  Your efforts may result in a system where the
index is totally invisible and the end user never has to know
about it.

I agree with what you are saying about the index.

But in git-gui I found myself writing code on Monday which tries to
hide the index from the user unless he/she requested that the index
be made visible.

The reason is there are some users who I'd like to give git-gui to
who I'm not sure I trust to make sure their index is in sync with
their working directory before they commit.  In some cases I'm lucky
that the user even knows what directory their file is stored in.  :-(
Yes, there really are computer users who are afraid of directories
and command lines.

I probably could try to teach them to make sure the final file
is included in the index before committing, but I think that for
most of them they would find this to be just another couple of
mouse clicks they have to perform before every commit, meaning its
something that the #$@!*@!*@$# tool should just do for them.

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