Another aspect to consider is that Mercurial solves a lot of the user interface issues surrounding Git, while still providing much of the same functionality. I think adding a simpler interface to Git would actually destroy a lot of what sets it apart from other DVCS.
I'm a fan of the Unix philosophy: different tools for different tasks (and users). Git for power users that want complete control, Mercurial for casual users that just need a basic versioning system. While I wouldn't want to deter you from looking into a simpler set of Git aliases, you should definitely start by studying Mercurial's API. Cheers! Ryan On Wed, May 29, 2013 at 10:01 AM, Dale R. Worley <wor...@alum.mit.edu>wrote: > > From: Bráulio Bhavamitra <brauli...@gmail.com> > > > > Adding highlevel commands, even though it could be implemented by a > > simple alias, would put git in another level of user experience and > > create a new standard for newbie users. What git developers think > > about this? > > It's a great idea, but beware that doing such a thing is project that > is much more difficult than it first appears. Here's a bit of an > orientation: > > Computer-literate people have highly complex mental models of how > computers and operating systems do what they do, and geekly > conversation is made up mostly of an exchange and comparison of these > models. > > Users do not want a complex mental model of their dishwasher and > fiercely resent attempts to instill one. It makes them feel put-down > for not having one and yet, at the same time, they know they neither > want nor need one. All they want to know is what to set the knob to. > They are appliance users and they want the computer to act like an > appliance. [...] > > As Tim Hunkin points out in his TV series, "The Secret Life of > Machines," an appliance interface is the most difficult and > sophisticated interface that can be constructed. To allow people > accomplish a complex task without possessing a mental model of the > process is extremely difficult. > -- "Ask Mr. Protocol" by Michael O'Brien > > It takes deep understanding (both of the tasks to be done and of how > users think) to produce a user interface that does *not* require deep > understanding to use. > > As for "What do the developers think?", it's clear (from looking at > the current user interface) that the developers aren't particularly > interested in solving that problem. But if you (or a group of people > you recruit) produce such an interface for Git, it would likely be > quite popular. > > Dale > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Git for human beings" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to git-users+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Git for human beings" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to git-users+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
