Re: [PATCH/RFC] setup: update error message to be more meaningful

Kaartic Sivaraam [off-list ref] writes:

On Fri, 2017-07-28 at 20:53 -0700, Junio C Hamano wrote:

quoted

Kaartic Sivaraam [off-list ref] writes:

quoted

Though the message seems to be most fitting one, I'm a little reluctant
to use it as it "might" create a wrong picture on the minds of the user
making them think this would be the case in other cases too, which we
know is not true. For example,


    git log -p --full-diff master --stat

    git commit -v Makefile --amend

These are accepted not by design but by accident.  

I do not think we even document that you are allowed to do these in
"log" and "commit" manual pages, and we should discourage them (I do
not even mind eventually removing these with the usual deprecation
dance, but I do not think it is worth the noise).

That's interesting. In that case, I'll go with the suggested statement,
happily!

It is not interesting at all.  It actually is disturbing that you
had the notion that these are "valid" command lines.

We perhaps need to somehow make sure new users won't be led to the
misunderstanding.  Improving our documentation is a good first step.
We might want to have a group of volunteers who actively monitor the
internets (e.g. stackoverflow and other places like that) and
correct people who spread the same misunderstanding when they do.