Differences between revisions 2 and 13 (spanning 11 versions)
Revision 2 as of 2009-05-19 19:31:05
Size: 1717
Editor: localhost
Comment: converted to 1.6 markup
Revision 13 as of 2021-01-28 14:02:20
Size: 1826
Editor: PaulBissex
Comment: Added/updated links, added config example, removed some less-helpful bits
Deletions are marked like this. Additions are marked like this.
Line 1: Line 1:
This is a subjective evaluation of Meld. Please add your opinion.
Line 5: Line 3:
[[http://meld.sourceforge.net/|Meld]] is a tool for making manual merges. It is a 3-way editor with visualization and propagation of differences. [[http://meldmerge.org/|Meld]] is a tool for making manual merges. It is a 3-way editor with visualization and propagation of differences.
Line 7: Line 5:
Meld is a GPL Python GTK Gnome tool, and thus unix only - no Windows version. Meld is available for Linux, MacOS, and Windows. On MacOS, Meld is available from [[https://www.macports.org/|MacPorts]], Fink, and [[https://brew.sh/|Homebrew]]. There are some notes available on [[https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Meld/Windows|how to get Meld running on Windows]].
Line 15: Line 13:
 * Remember that the left pane is the merge result  * By default then the left pane is the merge result
Line 19: Line 17:
 * Or, to change the order and which panes are displayed add a section "[merge-tools]" with "meld.args = $base $local $other" to your ~/.hgrc, specifying the order you prefer (since Meld's default order is different from some other diff tools)
 * To not see base at all set it to "meld.args = $local $other". You merge to the local copy, which in this arrangement is still the left pane
Line 20: Line 20:
== Issues ==

 * Meld often looses track of what is going on, and prints assertion warnings and crashes - a workaround is to save and then reloading ...
 * Left- and right-most pane can't be directly compared with each other like they can with the middle pane, and similarly changes can't propagate directly
 * No help for merging

== Conclusion ==

A good visualization tool and editor. A strong tool if you know what you are doing. But is lacking merge features and it is not sufficiently stable...
== Example .hgrc config ==
{{{
[merge-tools]
meld.priority = 1
meld.args = $base $local $other
}}}

Description

Meld is a tool for making manual merges. It is a 3-way editor with visualization and propagation of differences.

Meld is available for Linux, MacOS, and Windows. On MacOS, Meld is available from MacPorts, Fink, and Homebrew. There are some notes available on how to get Meld running on Windows.

Usage notes and tips

  • "Arrows" for propagation mode are toggled somehow with shift and control and alt
  • All 3 panes can be edited individually and must be saved individually
  • One way of working with Meld is to work towards making all 3 files equal - that forces you to review and rethink your merges in both contexts
  • Mercurial by default puts "file" is to the left, then "file~base", and finally "file~other"
  • By default then the left pane is the merge result
  • Enjoy that it is easy to see how the base version has diverged into two different versions
  • Changes from the new parent in "file~other" (to the right) can be propagated to "file" (to the left) through "file~base"
  • You could (and should?) start by copying everything from "file~other" to "file~base" in order to work with the two parents side-by-side - but then it is just a two-way merge...
  • Or, to change the order and which panes are displayed add a section "[merge-tools]" with "meld.args = $base $local $other" to your ~/.hgrc, specifying the order you prefer (since Meld's default order is different from some other diff tools)
  • To not see base at all set it to "meld.args = $local $other". You merge to the local copy, which in this arrangement is still the left pane

Example .hgrc config

[merge-tools]
meld.priority = 1
meld.args = $base $local $other

Meld (last edited 2021-01-28 14:21:28 by PaulBissex)