Is it possible to set diff/merge-tool for a specif

Question

I'm just getting started on developing in LabView, it's all new to me.

And i'd like to use git extensions to handle my versioning. Since the source is in a *.vi format, I can't use the normal diff tools, the source is binary.

Fortunately, LabView comes with dedicated diff and merge tools which seems to be very helpful. And I can setup TortoiseGit to use these tools on all *.vi files. It's from this how-to:

https://www.labviewhacker.com/doku.php?id=learn:software:github:getting_started

Is there a way to do the same in Git Extensions? I much prefer git extensions over TortoiseGit.. So I'd rather not be forced to use TortoiseGit.

From what I've found, you can only specify a general diff/merge tool, not different ones for different types of files.

Any help would be appreciated, do anyone know how? :)

Answer 1

If the output of the diff tool is text, you can view diffs under standard Git using a combination of .gitattributes and .git/config. I hope that Git Extensions would respect this setting.

I recommend reading the Git Attributes chapter of the Pro Git book for details on setting this up, but the idea should be something like

*.vi diff=labview

in your repository's .gitattributes file, and

[diff "labview"]
textconv = labview-diff-tool

in your .git/config.

If the diff tool does not output text, you may find the top response to this question useful, which discusses using a graphical diff tool.

Answer 2

Reference: http://zone.ni.com/reference/en-XX/help/371361H-01/lvhowto/configlvcomp_thirdparty/

1. Right-click in any folder (that is not a git project) and select TortoiseGit –> Settings
2. Click on Diff Viewer tab
3. Click Advanced -> Add
   1. Extension: .vi
   2. External Program: C:\Program Files (x86)\National Instruments\Shared\LabVIEW Compare\LVCompare.exe %base %mine-nobdcosm -nobdpos
      • -nobdcosm means do not compare the appearance of block diagram objects.
      • -nobdpos means do not compare the size or position of block diagram objects.
4. Repeat for: .ctl and .llb extensions