Re: [m4] The source code has been broken for years

[Michael Witten]

Bruno Haible wrote:

> You must be looking on the 'master' branch. Unlike most other git repos,
> for GNU m4, the current development takes place on the 'branch-1.4' branch,
> not on the 'master' branch:
> https://git.savannah.gnu.org/gitweb/?p=m4.git;a=shortlog;h=refs/heads/branch-1.4

Thanks for the HEADs up.

I see now that the home page (https://www.gnu.org/software/m4/) does indeed
inform the user to checkout that particular branch:

  git checkout -b branch-1.4 origin/branch-1.4

I had a really old repo in which I just ran 'git pull', and so I did not
know better.

Is the 'master' branch intended to be abandoned? If so:

  * Maybe it would be worthwhile to point 'master' to a commit that offers
    nothing but a 'README' explaining the abandonment.

  * Perhaps 'git config' offers some help. The variable 'transfer.hideRefs'
    looks like it might be worth investigating, but I'm not certain.

  * Run the following in the bare repository; it should help the user out
    by informing 'git clone' which branch to set up as the default:

      $ git symbolic-ref HEAD refs/heads/branch-1.4

Sincerely,
Michael Witten