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generate a GNU compilant ChangeLog file from the svn log messages

Usage: svn log -v --xml | svncl.pl > ChangeLog

A very simple Perl script to generate a neat ChangeLog file from the svn log messages.

Unlike some other existing tools for the same task the resulting ChangeLog file is more processed for a more comprehensive output. This improves the readability for situations with frequent commits. Easy installation, no complicated external dependencies, easy and totally optional configuration.

All consecutive log entries from the same author on the same day are unified to only one ChangeLog entry to avoid generating a longish sequence of one line entries for developers who prefer to do many small commits instead of few big one.

The other point are the author names. svn only lists the login names of the committing project members, but a fully-fledged changelog should list the full names and email adresses. svncl.pl automatically replaces all known names by using a configurable internal list.

The third difference is its simpicity. No big external dependencies, very easy (and totally optional) configuration.

Installation

Actually, there is no installation. Just unpack and copy svncl.pl somewhere in your path. Later you can add a list of known full names to make your ChangeLogs more complete (see configuation below)

No bulky dependencies, only a working perl enviroment with the LWP and HTML::Browser packages are needed. These come preinstalled as a standard part of almost every perl distribution.

Usage

Just give a verbose svn logfile in xml as input on stdin or as a file name argument and you will get a nicely sorted ChangeLog:

$> svn log -v --xml | svncl.pl > ChangeLog

Or if prefer to separate the two steps:

$> svn log -v --xml > log.xml
$> svncl.pl log.xml > ChangeLog

Due to the log entry unification and the name replacement a version history like this:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
r1922 | tenbaht | 2010-06-18 15:18:15 +0700 (Fri, 18 Jun 2010) | 1 line
Changed paths:
   D /trunk/gcstar/lib/gcstar/GCPlugins/GCfilms/GCDVDSpot.pm

[GCDVDSpot.pm] removed the plugin as dvdspot.com was shut down Okt. 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------
r1921 | tenbaht | 2010-06-18 14:56:15 +0700 (Fri, 18 Jun 2010) | 1 line
Changed paths:
   M /trunk/gcstar/lib/gcstar/GCPlugins/GCfilms/GCMediadis.pm

[GCMediadis.pm] added rating, added director+actor to search window, fixed actors name mangling and more minor changes 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
r1920 | tenbaht | 2010-06-18 11:21:25 +0700 (Fri, 18 Jun 2010) | 1 line
Changed paths:
   M /trunk/gcstar/lib/gcstar/GCPlugins/GCfilms/GCFilmAffinityEN.pm
   M /trunk/gcstar/lib/gcstar/GCPlugins/GCfilms/GCFilmAffinityES.pm

[GCFilmAffinityEN] add rating, sync both GCFilmAffinityE* files
------------------------------------------------------------------------
r1919 | tenbaht | 2010-06-18 11:08:13 +0700 (Fri, 18 Jun 2010) | 1 line
Changed paths:
   M /trunk/gcstar/lib/gcstar/GCPlugins/GCfilms/GCAnimeNfoA.pm

[GCAnimeNfoA.pm] added rating
------------------------------------------------------------------------

results in a ChangeLog entry like this:

2010-06-18  Michael Mayer (tenbaht)  <michael-mayer@gmx.de>

    * GCDVDSpot.pm: removed the plugin as dvdspot.com was shut down Okt. 2008

    * GCMediadis.pm: added rating, added director+actor to search window, fixed
      actors name mangling and more minor changes

    * GCFilmAffinityEN.pm, GCFilmAffinityES.pm: add rating, sync both
      GCFilmAffinityE* files

    * GCAnimeNfoA.pm: added rating

Configuration

If you like to use the address translation you have to enter the full names and email addresses first. Currently this translation table is hardwired in the sources. Maybe a little bit too simple, I know. But it works. And it is reliable.

Just edit svncl.pl in function 'start' at line 156 and add all the names you want to be replaced. Using a config file would be easy as well, but I am lazy. It is a simple task, so I like to use a simple tool for it.

other tools that do the same job

I am sure this list is not complete, but I know at least of these two:

svn2cl: Subversion ChangeLog generator
by Arthur De Jong, http://arthurdejong.org/svn2cl/
It a xsl stylesheet with a bash script wrapper. Easy to use but it did't
unify multiple commits on the same day.

svn2log
http://freshmeat.net/projects/svn2log/
Written in python. I couldn't get it running even after installing all
python libs.

Format of the resulting ChangeLog

In the conversion process text enclosed in '[]' at the beginning of a log messages is discarded, as this is supposed to be the filename which will be included anyway. If the contributers full name or email adress is known to the programm it is included in the log entry as well.

The resulting file is not exactly in GNU format, but very close. The two differences are:

• If the full name is known, the login name is added in parenthes, separated
  from the full name by one space.
• for multi line messages the following lines are indended by 6 spaces, not
  4 like the gnu format.

Both deviations should not break anything if you use other tools or editors for further log file processing as name and email adress are still seperated by two spaces, the full name and login by only one.