[Geany-Devel] f403e7e (PR#188) - Maintain edit history on document reload

[Lex Trotman]

On 25 June 2015 at 04:54, Thomas Martitz <kugel at rockbox.org> wrote:
> Am 24.06.2015 um 18:30 schrieb Colomban Wendling:
>>
>> Le 24/06/2015 17:04, Thomas Martitz a écrit :
>>>
>>> Hello
>>>
>>> I have just noticed that current git, by default, doesn't prompt anymore
>>> when reloading documents, even when they are changed.

If the user asked to reload, why should they then have to ask again?


>>>
>>> I traced it back to the $SUBJECT commit. IMO it's fine to keep the undo
>>> history on reload and not prompt, but it's not fine if the file is
>>> currently modified (unsaved) and reloading throws all unsaved changes
>>> away, without warning.

Its just undoable like any other change.


>>>
>>> This is especially problematic because the new pref is on by default so
>>> users will probably be surprised by the new, changed behavior and lose
>>> some hours of work (happend to me...).
>>
>> How does it loose work?  you can undo the reload and you get your stuff
>> back, don't you?
>
>
> Ah yes, that seems to work. I didn't even think of that (not sure why, but
> redo would seem more natural to me here). Anyway the new default behavior
> seems awkward to, surprising and unexpected in some way.

I'm struggling to understand why there is any confusion, reload is an
editing action just like any other and can be undone like any other.
Seems much safer to me and exactly what to expect.  It used to have a
side effect that was unexpected and nasty which was why it had a
dialog warning of that, now it doesn't, so its just like any other
command.

>
> I haven't looked at the code. Is the diff of the buffer and the file applied
> and recorded as an ordinary undo action?

Thats up to Scintilla how it records the reload.

>
>>> I'm asking for restoring the prompt (by default), at the very least if
>>> the file is unsaved.
>>
>> Would be fine with me, as I don't think reload is something done so
>> often that a confirmation would be much pain.  We could restore the
>> previous confirmation behavior.

Doesn't make sense, should we prompt on every delete action "You are
about to delete some characters (maybe even all of them), are you
sure?"?


>>
>> "offending" commit is
>>
>> https://github.com/geany/geany/commit/660c441b4af272fe4e40eb6a6cda2badb8f17eac
>> I guess.
>>
>
> Okay, with the "undo the reload" it's not as bad as I thought. However I
> still find the new default behavior confusing, especially for regular long
> time users like me.

Indeed long time users who are used to the old wrong behaviour need to
unlearn the wrong one.  But that doesn't mean we should prompt every
time we do it right.


>
> However, just restoring the prompt is also not ideal. Since the undo history
> is now remembered the prompt would be wrong (either way, for unsaved buffer
> it says "Any unsaved changes will be lost." and for saved buffer "Undo
> history will be lost.").
>
> I think one could improve the prompt depending on the pref. I think it would
> best to even incooperate a check box for the pref (like "[ ] Remember undo
> history" and "[ ] don't ask again" [the latter being insensitive if the
> first is unchecked]). How does that sound?

Like overkill.

I'm more bemused by the suggestions than strongly anti them, really
seems like wiping the users bottoms for them.

Cheers
Lex

>
> Best regards.
>
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