Almost every software developer has used some sort of source code version control system. You’re probably familiar with the acronyms GIT, SVN or the now aging CVS. Here is a list of version control systems.

Version control is a form of concurrency control with the benefit of revisions. Todays major versioning systems work by creating a copy of a resource, and allowing a user to work on that copy. The user then checks their modified copy back to the central source code repository. If the copy at the repository has changed, then the user must merge the two changed copies together.

Since each user is working on a remote copy, there is no real time collaboration involved at all. Each user must edit their copy individually without input from the other users. The collaboration is somewhat chunked, instead of a smooth integration of two or more users inputs.

I’ve been waiting for the day when real time concurrency control is integrated with source code version control. Just lately Google launched Google Wave, which essentially implements real time concurrency control in document editing. A while before that, Appjet Launched their Etherpad product, which implemented real time concurrency control in document and JavaScript source code editing.

Neither of these currently implement source code version control. However, they are proofs that real time concurrency control can be achievable over the web (HTTP) using Operantional Transformation (OT).

Now the missing link is to tie together a real time concurrency control system, with a version control system. Imagine checking out a document with a number of colleges, editing it concurrently in real time, and checking it back into version control.

The model of source code versioning will change dramatically with integrated real-time concurrency control. Checking out a copy may be a thing of the past. You can just join a a group that is editing a live copy, and revisions can be saved automatically for individuals and/or the group as a whole.

Add your own thoughts here…

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