I've been hearing a lot recently about SVN and Git.

When I make changes to code I rarely overwrite the old file directly.
Usually I rename the existing file as something else e.g. OLD_foobar.php
and then copy a new version of foobar.php

I was wondering whether using SVN is using a sledgehammer to crack
a walnut or is it worthwhile for a solo freelance guy.

I suppose in the near future there might be some requirement to
bring other coders in to work on stuff.

I use SVN for all my sites, I like it from an organisation tool even if the overall process is a little ott for a one man band.

Its great for keeping versions/backups and unless your SVN'ing massive sites space isnt going to be an issue.

I guess it comes down your personal work flow and how you like to organise.

I used CVS before using svn, and I must say that I'd never work again without a source control tool.
It saved my a s s more than once.

Usually I rename the existing file as something else e.g. OLD_foobar.php

If your modifications touch only 1 file, it works. But when it touches interfaces, db adapters, class, stored procedure/triggers and rendering, you may end up with a dozen of modified files to adapt that one modification.
Branching is way easier to maintain in that case.

And when you have a regression, looking at the differences is so much more easy when you can do a diff between the 2 versions...

I even have put my server configuration under svn.
For those times where you accidentaly overwrite your dns zone with an empty one.

I haven't used it myself. I'm pretty careful after making some big mistakes early on in my freelance life. However I agree with both John and Thierry that it's something worthwhile to use. It's one of those things I've been meaning to try and never get around to actually trying. The only downside I see is there seems to be something of a learning curve in the beginning, which is hardly much of a downside. I guess I haven't gotten past that curve, though my guess is it's not all that hard to get past.

I have never used a kind of versioning tool. I did try SourceSafe a long time ago and got so p----d off with having to create a new file simply because I corrected a spelling error by one letter.
Now maybe they have improved since then but heyho.

I have my own routine.

Major changes to a project and I will make a copy of the entire project folder at the start of the working session.
Minor code changes, copy & paste the line/function/block of code and comment out the earlier code or rename the old function/class.
and I will add a note to the module change list.

Changes to spellings or changing the text, just gets done.

Looks like I am going to have to learn either SVN or Git.

One developer advised me that Git is much better and that is the
reason a lot of high profile projects (Apache, JQuery, Ruby, Drupal) are using it.

Anyone here disagree that it would be best to go with Git?
It seems to be the way everything is moving.

One developer advised me that Git is much better and that is the
reason a lot of high profile projects (Apache, JQuery, Ruby, Drupal) are using it.

Anyone here disagree that it would be best to go with Git?
It seems to be the way everything is moving.

I'd rather say that in a worldwide distributed environment, GIT and non-centralized source repositories are better than SVN or CVS that are sever-centric.

In general, in enterprise with all the developers working in their wall, SVN is the usual enterprise choice.
In the open-source world, GIT is the traditional choice.

Originally Posted by tripy

I'd rather say that in a worldwide distributed environment, GIT and non-centralized source repositories are better than SVN or CVS that are sever-centric.

In general, in enterprise with all the developers working in their wall, SVN is the usual enterprise choice.
In the open-source world, GIT is the traditional choice.

Thanks, that answer really helps clarify the issue for me. Cheers.

Also throwing out there RCS, which I love. it's simple, portable, optionally keep revision history in the file... Git and SVN are sometimes too complicated for things like apache config files and such. RCS is a breeze.