Re: small request regarding commits in binutils-gdb.git

Pedro Alves
2014-01-15T16:50:07Z

On 01/15/2014 04:03 PM, Eli Zaretskii wrote:

> The text before the log entry is just a long way of saying the same
> thing as the log entry, isn't it? It repeats the info that is already
> in the log entry. Why does it make sense to repeat all that?

Comments in the code should describe anything non-obvious about
the _present_ state of the code. ("We used to do this, and now
do that" comments are not appropriate in the code.) The ChangeLog
entry says _what_ changed. The rationale for the change, the _why_
the change was made, the bridge between old and new, is what is
often lost in the mailing list archives, often times spread over
a discussion crossing several emails (and if it crosses the month
border, it's usually harder even to retrieve), if in any at all.
The commit log is the perfect place to store that info.

--
Pedro Alves