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How are fix and change different from remove and add?

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Audience member observes that fixing or changing code seems to amount to removing or adding features, and asks what distinguishes the transformations. Gamsjaeger: the key is atomic commits. A remove is typically just red lines (optionally with call-site adjustments). A fix addresses a violation of any established rule — including a suboptimal-state rule, not only production bugs (e.g. redundant whitespace extracted as its own fix). The question really boils down to atomicity: under true atomic discipline, a naive 'add' commit usually decomposes into a sequence of smaller transformations that can then be ordered by priority.

answer_summary
The distinction is crisp only under atomic-commit discipline: a fix corrects a rule violation/suboptimal state, and a naive add typically decomposes into removes, fixes, refactors, plus a smaller true add.
question How are fix and change different from remove and add?
about
Question concerns the five transformations.
question How are fix and change different from remove and add?
about
Atomic Commit concept
Answer hinges on the atomic-commit discipline.
question How are fix and change different from remove and add?
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Audience question during Q&A.

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