Chapter 5. Questions and Answers

This document may have been updated since your installation. +You can find the latest version at http://docs.kde.org/development/en/extragear-utils/.

5.1. + Why is it called "KDiff3"? +
5.2. + Why did I release it under GPL? +
5.3. + Some buttons and functions are missing. What's wrong? +
5.4. + Often lines that are similar but not identical appear next to each other + but sometimes not. Why? +
5.5. + Why must all conflicts be solved before the merge result can be saved? +
5.6. + How can I synchronise the diff and merge views, so that all views show the same text position? +
5.7. + Why does the editor in the merge result window not have an "undo"-function? +
5.8. + When I removed some text, then suddenly "<No src line>" appeared + and cannot be deleted. What does that mean and how can one remove this? +
5.9. + Why doesn't KDiff3 support syntax-highlighting? +
5.10. + Can I use KDiff3 to compare OpenOffice.Org, Word, Excel, PDF-, etc. files? +
5.11. + Where has the the directory option "List only deltas" gone? +
5.12. + How can I make a big selection in the diff input window + because scrolling takes so long? +
5.13. + There is so much information here, but your question is still not answered? +

5.1.	+ Why is it called "KDiff3"? +
	+ Tools named "KDiff" and "KDiff2" (now called "Kompare") already exist. Also "KDiff3" should suggest + that it can merge like the "diff3"-tool in the Diff-Tool collection. +
5.2.	+ Why did I release it under GPL? +
	+ I'm using GPL programs for a very long time now and learned very much + by having a look at many of the sources. Hence this is my "Thank You" + to all programmers that also did so or will do the same. +
5.3.	+ Some buttons and functions are missing. What's wrong? +
	+ You compiled from source but you probably didn't specify the correct KDE-prefix + with configure. By default configure wants to install in /usr/local but then KDE can't + find the user-interface ressource file (i.e. kdiff3ui.rc). The README-file contains + more information about the correct prefix. +
5.4.	+ Often lines that are similar but not identical appear next to each other + but sometimes not. Why? +
	+ Lines where only the amount of white space characters is different + are treated as "equal" at first, while just one different non-white character + causes the lines to be "different". If similar lines appear next to each + other, this actually is coincidence but this fortunately is often the case. + See also Manual Diff Help. +
5.5.	+ Why must all conflicts be solved before the merge result can be saved? +
	+ For each equal or different section the editor in the merge result + window remembers where it begins or ends. This is needed so that conflicts + can be solved manually by simply selecting the source button (A, B or C). + This information is lost while saving as text and it is too much effort to + create a special file format that supports saving and restoring all necessary + information. +
5.6.	+ How can I synchronise the diff and merge views, so that all views show the same text position? +
	+ Click into the summary column left of the text. (See also here.) +
5.7.	+ Why does the editor in the merge result window not have an "undo"-function? +
	+ This was too much effort until now. You can always + restore a version from one source (A, B or C) by clicking the respective + button. For big editing the use of another editor is recommended anyway. +
5.8.	+ When I removed some text, then suddenly "<No src line>" appeared + and cannot be deleted. What does that mean and how can one remove this? +
	+ For each equal or different section the editor in the merge result + window remembers where it begins or ends. "<No src line>" means + that there is nothing left in a section, not even a new line character. + This can happen either while merging automatically or by editing. This is + no problem, since this hint won't appear in the saved file. If you want + the orignal source back just select the section (click on the left summary + column) and then click the source button with the needed contents (A/B or + C). +
5.9.	+ Why doesn't KDiff3 support syntax-highlighting? +
	+ KDiff3 already uses many colors for difference highlighting. More + highlighting would be confusing. Use another editor for this. +
5.10.	+ Can I use KDiff3 to compare OpenOffice.Org, Word, Excel, PDF-, etc. files? +
	+ Although KDiff3 will analyse any kind of file the result will probably + not be very satisfactory for you. + + KDiff3 was made to compare pure text files. OpenOffice, Word, Excel etc. + store much more information in the files (about fonts, pictures, pages, + colors etc.) which KDiff3 doesn't know about. So KDiff3 will + show you the contents of the file interpreted as pure text, but + this might be unreadable or at least it will look very odd. + + Since most programs nowadays store their contents in XML-format, you might + be able to read it as pure text. So if the change was only small, + KDiff3 still might help you. + + The best solution if you only want to compare the text (without embedded + objects like pictures) is to use "Select All" and "Copy" in your program + to copy the interesting text to the clipoard and then in KDiff3 paste the + text into either diff input window. + (See also Select, Copy And Paste.) +
5.11.	+ Where has the the directory option "List only deltas" gone? +
	+ There are now several "Show"-options in the directory menu. + Disabling "Show identical files" will achieve what enabling "List only deltas" used to do. +
5.12.	+ How can I make a big selection in the diff input window + because scrolling takes so long? +
	+ Start the selection as usual (click and hold the left mouse button). + Then use the navigation keys (e.g. page up, page down) while holding the left mouse button down. + (See also Select, Copy And Paste.) +
5.13.	+ There is so much information here, but your question is still not answered? +
	+ Please send me your question. I appreciate every comment. +