Org-Mode Merge Tool

• Andrew Young
• youngar17 at gmail dot com
• on freenode irc #org-mode, Pwyl

Emacs-orgmode - Git merge tool for Org Files

The original idea can be found on the Org-Mode GSoC 2012 ideas page, here.

Org mode is an extension to the emacs text editor that adds organizer functionality. Orgmode is implemented as an emacs major mode, written in ELisp, making it available on all platforms Emacs is. One of the key benefits of Org-Mode is that it uses human readable plain-text files, meaning the format will always be free and never proprietary.

The project is to create an extension to Org-Mode which will act as a merge driver for Org-Mode files. A merge driver is a program which will combine two versions of a file based off of a common ancestor into a single file, marking conflicting changes within. A specialized merge driver for Org-Mode files will be able to leverage the file structure to understand the effects of modifications on the integrity of sections.

The main use of a merge driver is for use in collaborative writing, and it will be compatible with Git, Mercurial, and Bazaar. The merge driver will solidify Org-Mode as a tool for collaborative work.

By completing this project, it will extend the uses and capabilities of Org-Mode. This tool will allow people to easily use Org-Mode in collaborative projects, and combine conflicting versions of a file into a single file.

Software developers will now be able to use Org-Mode with their projects, allowing them to create documentation and notes in the same repository as their code, and allow Org-Mode to become an integral part of the software development process. Bringing Org-Mode's utility to software-development projects will boost any programmer's productivity.

The sucessful completion of this project will bring all the advantages of version control software to Org-Mode users in any environment. Version control software will enable simple backing up, tracking, and visitation of previous versions of Org-Mode files.

This project will increase the potential userbase of Org-Mode, which will help promote GNU Software and the Free Software Foundation. Aswell, GNU will benefit from this project by having access to quality code which could be used as a basis for more merge drivers.

The main deliverable for this project is the source code for a merge driver which specializes in merging Org-Mode files. The merge driver should be able to leverage the structure of Org-Mode files to merge files without conflicts.

Documentation will also be created which explains how to install the merge driver, and set it up for use in version controlled projects. This documentation will added in the official Org-Mode documentation, available at the project webpage. Code documentation, which explains methodology and contribution information, will be located at the project page. The project webpage will be hosted on Worg, a section of the Org-Mode webpage.

I do not expect this project to require any contributions or changes to Org-Mode's codebase. If contributions are neccessary, I will create Git-patches and submit them to the developers. For a more detailed list of what will be done, please see section 'Project Plan' below.

My mentor will be able to track my progress through repository commits, milestone progress, and personal progress communications. Midterm evaluations can be conducted by evaluating the quality of the code I have produced and my progress towards creating the end product.

My final school exam is April 23, and I will begin working on this project immediately. The GSoC Schedule indicates students begin coding May 21, but I will start working before that. There are no periods over the course of this project where I expect to not be available to work.

The creation of supporting documentation and testing for each project step are included as part of that step, and so there is no dedicated stage for documenting and testing.

During my work on this project, I will be active on the IRC chanel #org-mode, and in the Org-Mode developers mailing list. I think that it would be a good idea to have weekly meetings to discuss current progress and diffculties. Both email and IRC are my preferred ways of contact, although I can be reached by phone, on Skype, and gabber. I am willing to use any other forms of communication which my mentor thinks will help. If neccessary, I can change my sleeping cycle if my mentor lives in a different time zone (I am well practiced at living with odd sleeping times).

My code will be made publicly available. If my mentor has no preference for where the source code is kept, I will use GitHub or Google Code services to host a repository. All documentation will be publicly available at the project webpage or in the official Org-Mode documentation, as outlined above.

This project immediately stood out to me when i saw it. I regularly use Git to host personal projects with my friends, and use Org-Mode to organize myself and these projects. I have personally experienced the problem which this project is trying to solve. I find the concept of parsing text files into data structures interesting, as well as the mechanics behind 3-way merges, and fuzzy string matching.

When the project is finished, I will be happy to maintain it. This would mean fixing bugs, keeping it compatable with the current version of Org-Mode, and lastly adding new features.

I am a level 4 year Software Engineering and Management student at McMaster University (Hamilton Ontario, Canada). I have never worked on free software before, or any large public projects, but have always wanted to.

This project will require knowledge of diff merging, Org-Mode file structure and use, command representation (for listing file modifications), fuzzy logic and probability. Of these things, I will need to make sure my knowledge of Org-Mode file structure is complete, learn fuzzy logic and string matching.