[PATCH] Documentation/email-clients.txt: discuss In-Reply-To

[Chris Metcalf]

In-Reply-To: <20151023090459.GW17308@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>

This commit adds a paragraph suggesting best practices for
when to link patches to previous LKML messages via In-Reply-To.

Signed-off-by: Chris Metcalf <cmetcalf@xxxxxxxxxx>
---
 Documentation/email-clients.txt | 10 ++++++++++
 1 file changed, 10 insertions(+)

diff --git a/Documentation/email-clients.txt b/Documentation/email-clients.txt
index 3fa450881ecb..547c54a2f4e0 100644
--- a/Documentation/email-clients.txt
+++ b/Documentation/email-clients.txt
@@ -39,6 +39,16 @@ you avoid some possible charset problems.
 Email clients should generate and maintain References: or In-Reply-To:
 headers so that mail threading is not broken.
 
+When manually adding In-Reply-To: headers to a patch (e.g., using `git
+send email`), use common sense to associate the patch with previous
+relevant discussion, e.g. link a bug fix to the email with the bug report.
+For a multi-patch series, it is generally best to avoid using
+In-Reply-To: to link to older versions of the series.  This way
+multiple versions of the patch don't become an unmanageable forest of
+references in email clients.  If a link is helpful, you can use an
+"http://lkml.kernel.org/r/MESSAGEID"; URL (e.g., in the cover email
+text) to link to an earlier version of the patch series.
+
 Copy-and-paste (or cut-and-paste) usually does not work for patches
 because tabs are converted to spaces.  Using xclipboard, xclip, and/or
 xcutsel may work, but it's best to test this for yourself or just avoid
-- 
2.1.2

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