[TUHS] SCCS, TeamWare, BitKeeper, and Git

[Bakul Shah via TUHS]

On Dec 15, 2024, at 6:31 AM, Larry McVoy <lm at mcvoy.com> wrote:
> 
> Indeed.  And if USENIX were still a thing, I might write that paper.  I'm
> not particularly motivated.  I participated in a 3 day SCM something a
> while back, put on by google and facebook.  I spent 3 days listening to
> their problems, and on most of them, I said "yeah, we solved that, here
> is what we did".  And then watched while they ignored everything.
> 
> So I'm not hopeful that people will get it.  If I were younger, I might
> write the paper anyway but I'm not.

A well written paper (as opposed to random discussions in a
meeting with multiple interruptions) would definitely help
people get it. I certainly would read it, in preference to
127K+ LoC in bitkeeper/src!

>> I've noted your enthusiasm for the weave and BK's amplification of the
>> concept.  What I think you need is, as noted, a mathematical expositor
>> who can express the novelty of Rochkind's and your contributions in
>> terms that professionals who have little contact with the problems of
>> "source code configuration management" (an alternative nomenclature for
>> "version control" I've encountered) can comprehend.  You've tried
>> popularizing to the masses.  My conclusion is that, at best, they stare
>> slackly at you and say, "Git does that.  I use Git.".  To get your
>> innovation more broadly recognized, you may therefore have to take your
>> case to the ivory tower.
> 
> You're almost there.  What they say is "I use Github".  Github has
> dumbed down DVCS to the point they aren't much different than CVS.
> When I realized that years ago, I retired.  My belief is BK is sort of
> like betamax, it's better but VHS won.  It is what it is.

Purely as a thought experiment & with the benefit of hindsight:
What would you do differently if you were to reimplement bk?
What were some things you wanted to do but didn't get around to?
Include any blue sky ideas! Include any simplifying ideas!

Given that there are newer than git efforts like jujitsu and pijul
etc., git won't be the last word. Though it hasn't reached the VHS
stage of obsolescence!