On May 19, 2012, at 9:26 PM, Barry Warsaw wrote:
While I really don't want to get into yet another religious VCS discussion on yet another unrelated list <wink>, Bazaar has one killer feature IMO that neither hg nor git has. (There are many things I prefer in bzr over hg and git, but this is the big one).
Bazaar has a strong concept of a 'mainline' branch.
I can argue that this is also a weakness. The tool is imposing management practices on the users. In a current sense, conventions are equally capable of designating the mainline. In a historical sense, the mainline only indicates the order of "approval".
Having a main branch implies that the organization is imposing its idea of "the right way".
It is somewhat like the Corp of Engineers telling a river how it should travel through its delta region.
History shows that parts which once were considered "the main branch" often become byways as the momentum of the flow embraces new ideas, directions or leadership.