[tahoe-lafs-trac-stream] [tahoe-lafs] #2088: create-node problem

[tahoe-lafs]

#2088: create-node problem
-------------------------------+-------------------------------------------
     Reporter:  jbark55        |      Owner:  warner
         Type:  defect         |     Status:  new
     Priority:  normal         |  Milestone:  soon
    Component:  code-          |    Version:  1.10.0
  frontend-cli                 |   Keywords:  usability new-user easy error
   Resolution:                 |
Launchpad Bug:                 |
-------------------------------+-------------------------------------------
Changes (by warner):

 * keywords:  usability new-user brians-opinion-needed easy error =>
     usability new-user easy error


Comment:

 I'd be ok with option A (the redundant information approach):

 {{{
 $ tahoe create-node
 Attempting to create node in the default directory
 '/home/jonathanbarker/.tahoe'.
 The base directory '/home/jonathanbarker/.tahoe' is not empty.
 To avoid clobbering anything, I am going to quit now.
 Please use a different directory, or empty this one.
 }}}

 Maybe even modifying that last line to say "Please add '-d OTHERDIR' to
 use a different directory".

 I'm not so keen on option B, because it makes the common case more
 verbose, in favor of a less-common case. Most users will only ever
 deal with a single node, so using a default location like
 {{{~/.tahoe}}} means less typing. If we removed the default, then
 every single tahoe command they typed would need to specify the
 basedir ({{{tahoe -d BASEDIR ls}}}, etc). I've watched Zooko be
 willing to type that much (dude, try typing just "make".. I bet you
 can't do it! :-) your fingers are hardwired to include some timing
 commands, redirect stdout to one place, stderr to some other place,
 etc), but I'm certainly not, and I don't want to impose that burden
 on our users.

 Only developers (who launch multiple nodes at once, in
 self-contained test grids) are likely to need control over the
 basedir, and so it's reasonable for them/us to type more to get
 that control.

 I'm -0 on printing the usage message on error in this particular
 case. Having "default ~/.tahoe" on the screen is good, but I fear
 that all that usage text will obscure the "this directory wasn't
 empty" message, and will make people think that they made some sort
 of syntax error in the arguments, rather than a conceptual error
 involving the placement/new-ness of the node directory.

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://tahoe-lafs.org/trac/tahoe-lafs/ticket/2088#comment:7>
tahoe-lafs <https://tahoe-lafs.org>
secure decentralized storage