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Off topic and rather personal question: I prefer Mercurial for my own VCS needs because (1) it's written in Python so I can hack on it or write extensions using

by gkya 8y ago

Off topic and rather personal question: I prefer Mercurial for my own VCS needs because (1) it's written in Python so I can hack on it or write extensions using a proper Python library if needed and (2) I find the UI better. But seeing how Git is becoming just as widespread as the English language in the software world, would it be wiser for me to abandon Mercurial for Git?

callahad 8y ago
All of this is transient. Eventually someone will figure out a new paradigm (Darcs/Pijul-style patch theory?) and we'll all move on, like we did from RCS, and CVS, and Subversion. Or something will fall apart on the business side of GitHub, and we'll all go elsewhere. Like we did with SourceForge, CodePlex, and Google Code. So, what are your goals? Switching to Git might give you access to more tooling, but if you're not presently feeling hindered by Mercurial, it's probably most wise to focus on making software, rather than chasing tools. Similarly, if you're seeking feedback and patches from strangers online, then going to GitHub is your best bet, which implies forfeiting Mercurial (though maybe something like hg-git [https://hg-git.github.io/ https://hg-git.github.io/] could give you the best of both worlds?)
- gkya 8y ago
  Thanks! I already use hg-git for pushing some open-source projects to GitHub, as it makes it easier for people to contribute patches and issues, and if I was looking for a professional software job, that's what people look at, among other things to evaluate you. That said, syncing up multiple branches can be confusing (as git branches are mapped to bookmarks, and mercurial branches don't have git equivalents, so if you have say a default and a dev branch in hg and want equivalent branches in git, you need to manually juggle bookmarks in hg). My worry, more than my goals, is that would it be a major problem not having mastered git should I look for professional jobs? I do know git to some extent, but don't know common medium-advanced tasks. WRT your first paragraph, there is a story on the front page of MS having agreed to acquire GH: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17221527 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17221527

by gkya 8y ago

callahad 8y ago

All of this is transient. Eventually someone will figure out a new paradigm (Darcs/Pijul-style patch theory?) and we'll all move on, like we did from RCS, and CVS, and Subversion. Or something will fall apart on the business side of GitHub, and we'll all go elsewhere. Like we did with SourceForge, CodePlex, and Google Code. So, what are your goals? Switching to Git might give you access to more tooling, but if you're not presently feeling hindered by Mercurial, it's probably most wise to focus on making software, rather than chasing tools. Similarly, if you're seeking feedback and patches from strangers online, then going to GitHub is your best bet, which implies forfeiting Mercurial (though maybe something like hg-git [https://hg-git.github.io/ https://hg-git.github.io/] could give you the best of both worlds?)

gkya 8y ago
Thanks! I already use hg-git for pushing some open-source projects to GitHub, as it makes it easier for people to contribute patches and issues, and if I was looking for a professional software job, that's what people look at, among other things to evaluate you. That said, syncing up multiple branches can be confusing (as git branches are mapped to bookmarks, and mercurial branches don't have git equivalents, so if you have say a default and a dev branch in hg and want equivalent branches in git, you need to manually juggle bookmarks in hg). My worry, more than my goals, is that would it be a major problem not having mastered git should I look for professional jobs? I do know git to some extent, but don't know common medium-advanced tasks. WRT your first paragraph, there is a story on the front page of MS having agreed to acquire GH: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17221527 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17221527