Subject: [PATCH] gitignore.txt: suggestions how to get literal # or ! at the beginning

From: Nguyễn Thái Ngọc Duy <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2012 15:38:21 +0700

We support backslash escape, but we hide the details behind the phrase
"a shell glob suitable for consumption by fnmatch(3)". So it may not
be obvious how one can get literal # or ! at the beginning of a pattern.
Add a few lines on how to work around the magic characters.

Signed-off-by: Nguyễn Thái Ngọc Duy <[email-masked]>
---
 Asciidoc 8.2.6 does not like me writing
 "Put \# if you need a literal #.." so I go with "backslash" and
 "hash" instead. `\!` displays fine both in man page and html format.
 '!' changed to `!` because it looks clearer in monospace.

 Documentation/gitignore.txt | 7 +++++--
 1 file changed, 5 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/gitignore.txt b/Documentation/gitignore.txt
index 96639e0..8c03ed4 100644
--- a/Documentation/gitignore.txt
+++ b/Documentation/gitignore.txt
@@ -74,11 +74,14 @@ PATTERN FORMAT
    for readability.
 
  - A line starting with # serves as a comment.
+   Put a backslash in front of the first hash for the patterns
+   that start with a hash.
 
- - An optional prefix '!' which negates the pattern; any
+ - An optional prefix `!` which negates the pattern; any
    matching file excluded by a previous pattern will become
    included again.  If a negated pattern matches, this will
-   override lower precedence patterns sources.
+   override lower precedence patterns sources. Use `\!` if
+   you need a literal `!` at the beginning of the pattern.
 
  - If the pattern ends with a slash, it is removed for the
    purpose of the following description, but it would only find
-- 
1.7.12.1.406.g6ab07c4