bug#8924: 23.3; Editing is rather difficult using vc with RCS backend

[Richard Stanton]

I regularly use vc to keep track of versions of my edited files,
primarily using CVS, but less often using RCS, mainly where there's
just a single file I want to track edits to, and it's more convenient to
keep the repository with the file.

This all used to work fine (though I can't exactly recall what version
of EMACS was the last under which all worked fine). However, while
vc+CVS still works fine, vc+RCS acts in some rather strange ways that
make using it inconvenient or even risky.

1) As an example, in a directory rcstest, 

a. Create and save a new LaTeX document in EMACS, say rcstest/test.tex, 
containing the test

-----

% $Id$
\documentclass[12pt]{article}
\begin{document}
A very short document
\end{document}

----

b. Now type C-x v v and ask Emacs to use the RCS backend. It checks in the
file, the current buffer now displays RCS-1.1 in the mode line, and the
first line of the file now contains

% $Id: test.tex,v 1.1 2011/06/23 20:51:48 stanton Exp $

All looking good so far.

c. Now edit the file by adding another comment line beneath the first,
e.g.,

% Here's another comment

Save the file and then type C-x v v. I'd expect it to check in the new
version, making it revision 1.2 (this is what happens now if I use vc+CVS
instead of vc+RCS, and used to happen under prior versions of EMACS when I
used vc+RCS). However, instead I get a message telling me "Fileset is
up-to-date", and nothing else happens. The file, repository, and buffer
are left completely unchanged. This is not so useful...

2) The initial $Id$ line seems important here. If I do the same thing
again, but do *not* include the initial % $Id$ line in the file,
different things happen. 

a. Create, save, and register with RCS backend a new file as above, this time 
containing the text

-----

\documentclass[12pt]{article}
\begin{document}
A very short document
\end{document}

----

b. Now edit the file by adding a comment somewhere, say, after line 1,

% Here's a comment

Save the file and then type C-x v v. This time, I get an error buffer
telling me

RCS/test.tex,v  -->  test.tex
revision 1.1 (locked)
co: writable test.tex exists; checkout aborted

and again cannot check in the new file.

3) Sometimes the behavior is different still. With no header line,
sometimes instead of the error message above, when I type C-x v v, the
most recently checked-in version of the file is checked out again,
over-writing my edits in the current buffer. This is a bit scary...

It seems that I can get this to work if, after checking in the file
using C-x v v, I immediately press C-x v v again, which causes Emacs to
tell me it's checking the file out again (even though nothing changes in
the current buffer that I can see), and then I can edit, save, and check
in OK (as long as I remember to use C-x v v twice each time I check the
file in). This is at least possible, but it differs from the behavior
when I'm using the CVS backend, and from the old behavior of the RCs
backend (and if I ever forget, I'm in danger of losing all my edits
since the last check-in, something that isn't so good).

Thanks for checking into this.

Richard Stanton
 





In GNU Emacs 23.3.1 (i386-mingw-nt6.0.6002)
 of 2011-03-10 on 3249CTO
Windowing system distributor `Microsoft Corp.', version 6.0.6002
configured using `configure --with-gcc (4.5) --no-opt --cflags 
-Ic:/imagesupport/include'

Important settings:
  value of $LC_ALL: nil
  value of $LC_COLLATE: nil
  value of $LC_CTYPE: nil
  value of $LC_MESSAGES: nil
  value of $LC_MONETARY: nil
  value of $LC_NUMERIC: nil
  value of $LC_TIME: nil
  value of $LANG: ENU
  value of $XMODIFIERS: nil
  locale-coding-system: cp1252
  default enable-multibyte-characters: t

Major mode: LaTeX/P

Minor modes in effect:
  reftex-mode: t
  flyspell-mode: t
  outline-minor-mode: t
  TeX-PDF-mode: t
  shell-dirtrack-mode: t
  yas/global-mode: t
  yas/minor-mode: t
  recentf-mode: t
  ido-everywhere: t
  tooltip-mode: t
  mouse-wheel-mode: t
  menu-bar-mode: t
  file-name-shadow-mode: t
  global-font-lock-mode: t
  font-lock-mode: t
  blink-cursor-mode: t
  auto-encryption-mode: t
  auto-compression-mode: t
  column-number-mode: t
  line-number-mode: t
  visual-line-mode: t
  transient-mark-mode: t
  abbrev-mode: t

Recent input:
<return> <kp-right> <kp-right> <kp-right> <kp-right> 
<kp-right> $ C-k C-x C-s C-x v v R C S <return> <return> 
<help-echo> <down-mouse-1> <mouse-1> <down-mouse-1> 
<mouse-1> <kp-up> <kp-up> <kp-down> % SPC A d d SPC 
a SPC c o m m e n t <return> C-x C-s C-x v v C-x v 
v C-x v v <kp-up> <kp-up> <kp-up> <kp-down> C-k <kp-up> 
C-k C-k C-k C-k C-x C-s C-x v v q q C-x k <return> 
C-x o C-x 1 C-x v v q <help-echo> <down-mouse-1> <mouse-1> 
<help-echo> <down-mouse-1> <mouse-1> C-x k <return> 
C-x o C-x 1 C-x C-v <return> C-k C-k C-k C-a C-x C-s 
C-x v v R C S <return> <return> C-x v v <return> <return> 
<up> <up> % SPC A d d SPC a SPC c o m m e n t <return> 
C-k C-x C-s C-x v v A d d e d SPC a SPC c o m m e n 
t C-c C-c % SPC A d d SPC a SPC n e w SPC c o m m e 
n t <return> C-x C-s q C-x C-s q <help-echo> <down-mouse-1> 
<mouse-1> C-x C-s q C-x v v <C-kp-home> <kp-end> <return> 
% SPC A d d SPC a n o t h e r SPC c m m <backspace> 
<backspace> o m m e n t C-c C-c C-g C-g C-x C-s C-x 
v v A d d e d SPC a SPC n o t e h r <backspace> <backspace> 
<backspace> <backspace> <backspace> <backspace> <backspace> 
n o t h e r C-c C-c <return> % SPC A n d SPC n o w 
? C-x C-s q <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> 
<help-echo> <down-mouse-1> <mouse-1> <help-echo> <help-echo> 
<help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> 
<help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> 
<help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> <help-echo> 
<help-echo> <menu-bar> <help-menu> <send-emacs-bug
-report>

Recent messages:
Mark set
Press C-c C-c when you are done editing.
Enter a change comment.  Type C-c C-c when done
Checking in c:/projects/test/version/rcs/duration.tex...done
Saving file c:/projects/test/version/rcs/duration.tex...
Entering debugger...
Back to top level.
Auto-saving...
Sorting environment...
Removing duplicates... done

Load-path shadows:
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/pulse hides 
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/mode-local hides 
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/inversion hides 
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/ede/ede hides 
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/data-debug hides 
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/cedet hides 
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c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/cedet-idutils hides 
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/lisp/cedet/cedet-idutils
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/cedet-global hides 
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/lisp/cedet/cedet-global
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/cedet-files hides 
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/lisp/cedet/cedet-files
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/site-lisp/cedet-1.0/common/cedet-cscope hides 
c:/emacs/emacs-23.3/lisp/cedet/cedet-cscope

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