Committing IDE meta files: misconceptions, misunderstandings, and solutions.

Aurelien Pupier - @apupier

Studio Development Leader

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IDE Meta files: what?

Storage of data describing a

project/module

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IDE Meta files: what for?

For the best development Experience

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IDE Meta files: what for in details?

• Checkstyle & code conventions

• Specify toolchain

• Commit message format

• And more!

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IDE Meta files advantages

• Share common configuration within team

• Help newcomers

• Help casual contributors

• LTS

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IDEs tour: Commit or not recommendation

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IntelliJ IDEA

• article

– Commits .idea (replacing .iml and .ipr)

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• documentation

– “folders should not be checked into that version control

system.”

– “nbproject should be checked into the version control

system”

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XCode

• answer

– .xccheckout to commit

– .xcuserdata not to commit

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•Unity official documentation:

–“When checking the project into a

version control system, you should add

the Assets and

the ProjectSettings directories to the

system.”

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Eclipse

• Eclipse forum answer

• blog article from an Eclipse trainer

– .project

– .settings/

– .classpath

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Why don’t you want to commit?

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Heard arguments to not commit (1/4)

• Relative to an environment

– Several years ago yes

• Never encountered, I’m lucky or too young

• Found 2004 detailed report

– Very specific use cases:

• use IDE variables

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Heard arguments to not commit (2/4)

• Pollutes other IDEs:

– Hide files

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Heard arguments to not commit (3/4)

• Locked to a specific IDE:

– You’re not!

– Hide files

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Heard arguments to not commit (4/4)

• Different IDE versions across team:

– Works like a charm for years for us with Eclipse

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If you (and he/she) loose

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Convince & Commit (and Report/Contribute)

@apupier

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