一句话：提出把合并冲突视为一种软件可变性，以支持按需分析、探索与延迟批量解决冲突。
合并是软件版本控制与协作开发的核心，但现有技术要求在每次合并尝试时立即解决冲突，导致开发者频繁被打断，并阻碍持续集成。本文提出一种范式转变：不再把合并冲突视为必须立刻消除的障碍，而是将其视为一种显式刻画开发者意图分歧的软件可变性——冲突引发的可变性（conflict-induced variability）。这种可变性定义了若干可选行为，可以按需对其进行探索、分析，并基于分析结果进行延迟的批量冲突解决。作者由此勾勒出一条研究路线，目标是在保持现有合并技术实用性的同时，通过更高的灵活性与更有效的冲突解决来加速传统版本控制工作流。本文属于立场／愿景论文，未报告实现或实证评估。
Merging is central to software version control and collaborative work, yet current techniques force developers to resolve conflicts immediately upon each merge attempt, causing constant interruptions and hampering continuous integration. To mitigate, we propose a paradigm shift: merge conflicts shall be no longer treated as obstacles to be eliminated immediately, but as a form of software variability that explicitly captures diverging developer intentions. Such conflict-induced variability defines alternative behaviors that can be explored, analyzed, and resolved upon request, enabling deferred bulk conflict resolution based on the analysis results. With this, we open an avenue of research around a paradigm that shall preserve the practicality of today’s merging techniques, while accelerating traditional versioning workflows through increased flexibility and more effective conflict resolution.