#Comparison to Git

Lix is not a Git replacement. It's designed for files other than source code and built to be embedded in applications.

The fundamental difference between Git and Lix:

• Git: "line 5 changed"
• Lix: "price changed from $10 to $12"

Git tracks text line-by-line. Lix is schema-aware - it understands data structure. This means tracking specific fields (price, email, status) instead of arbitrary line numbers.

#When to Use Git vs Lix

Use Git for source code. Git is purpose-built for software engineering and developer workflows.

Use Lix for everything else. Structured data like JSON, CSV, Excel, or any non-code file format.

#Key Differences

#1. Schema-Aware Change Tracking

Git tracks changes line-by-line without understanding data structure. A JSON property change appears as "line 5 modified" with no semantic context.

Lix is schema-aware. It can track:

• JSON: Individual properties (/product/price changed from $10 to $12)
• CSV: Specific cells or rows
• Excel: Individual cells with row/column context

This enables:

• Precise diffs: "price field changed from $10 to $12" instead of line numbers
• Granular queries: SQL queries like "show all email changes in the last week"
• Smarter conflict resolution: Schema-aware merging reduces conflicts

// Query history of a single JSON property
const priceHistory = await lix.db
  .selectFrom("state_history")
  .innerJoin(
    "change_author",
    "change_author.change_id",
    "state_history.change_id",
  )
  .innerJoin("account", "account.id", "change_author.account_id")
  .where("entity_id", "=", "/sku_124/price")
  .where("schema_key", "=", "plugin_json_pointer_value")
  .orderBy("lixcol_depth", "asc") // depth 0 = current
  .select([
    "state_history.change_id",
    "state_history.snapshot_content", // { value: 250 }
    "account.display_name",
  ])
  .execute();

#2. Plugin System for Any File Format

Git treats binary files as opaque blobs. You can't query "what changed in cell C45?" for Excel or "which layer was modified?" for design files.

Lix uses plugins to understand file formats. Each plugin defines:

• What constitutes a trackable unit (a cell, a row, a JSON property)
• How to detect changes between versions
• How to reconstruct files from changes

Plugins can handle JSON, CSV, Excel, PDFs, design files, or proprietary formats.

#3. SDK, Not CLI

Git is an external CLI tool. Integrating it into applications requires shelling out to commands and parsing text output.

Lix is an embeddable JavaScript library that runs directly in your application:

• Runs anywhere: Browsers, Node.js, edge functions, Web Workers
• SQL queries: Query change history programmatically instead of parsing CLI output
• Portable storage: .lix files (SQLite) can be stored in OPFS, S3, database columns, or in-memory

// Time-travel: query file history from a specific commit
const history = await lix.db
  .selectFrom("file_history")
  .where("path", "=", "/catalog.json")
  .where("lixcol_root_commit_id", "=", versionCommit)
  .orderBy("lixcol_depth", "asc")
  .execute();

// Cross-version file comparison
const diff = await lix.db
  .selectFrom("file_history as v1")
  .innerJoin("file_history as v2", "v1.id", "v2.id")
  .where("v1.lixcol_root_commit_id", "=", versionACommit)
  .where("v2.lixcol_root_commit_id", "=", versionBCommit)
  .where("v1.lixcol_depth", "=", 0)
  .where("v2.lixcol_depth", "=", 0)
  .select(["v1.path", "v1.data as versionAData", "v2.data as versionBData"])
  .execute();