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Comment on "Preview of Versions SVN Client"
by Sanjay Samani — Jun 01
Whilst very slick, it does seem to tackle the issue of version control in a very conventional way.

For many Mac developers, Xcode's Subversion integration is sufficient for day to day requirements - checking diffs before check in, check in itself, updates, etc.

A Subversion GUI normally comes into play on those occasions when you need investigate the change history. From the screen shots it does not appear that Versions does anything different from the other Source Control GUI's available for Mac, Linux or Unix.

For example I would like to be able to see the following:
- Pick a method in a file and have a timeline that I could scrub through to see the changes over time. To identify when and why a particular change was made.

- The timeline could also work line iPhoto's shelf in edit mode, as an easy way to pick two older versions to compare, compared to the clunky interfaces we have now.

- Be able to select a line(s) of code and find out quickly when & why the were added.

- Include a diff tool that does not get confused by re-ordering of methods when comparing files. The diff tool should get "excited" about source code.

- See a graphical tree representation of check ins, branching, merges and tags. Something like Quartz Composer or the Unix History

I find it surprising how many developers tackle the problem of SCM GUI's and don't try to solve the problems they face themselves. An innovative GUI client needs tackle problems developers face.
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