bug#41857: Clarify browser / emacs kill-ring interaction more

bug#41857: Clarify browser / emacs kill-ring interaction more

[積丹尼 Dan Jacobson]

(info "(emacs) Primary Selection") says:

       Under X, whenever the region is active (*note Mark::), the text in
    the region is saved in the primary selection.  This applies regardless
    of whether the region was made by dragging or clicking the mouse (*note
    Mouse Commands::), or by keyboard commands (e.g., by typing ‘C-<SPC>’
    and moving point; *note Setting Mark::).

This isn't clear if it is talking only about actions within emacs, or
also e.g., actions within a browser.
Also within a browser we talk about 'highlighting' and 'copying text'.

Anyway, it should also add a section:

    If you often find yourself sending people emails with
    "Grandma's new account number is: [old account number]"
    because you copied the new number from a browser while having the old
    one still in your kill ring and they looked too similar so you didn't
    realize... then you need to setq ...

And, (info "(emacs) Clipboard")'s

       Yank commands, such as ‘C-y’ (‘yank’), also use the clipboard.  If
    another application “owns” the clipboard—i.e., if you cut or copied text
    there more recently than your last kill command in Emacs—then Emacs
    yanks from the clipboard instead of the kill ring.

should mention when this does not apply.

And (info "(emacs) Primary Selection")

       To insert the primary selection into an Emacs buffer, click ‘mouse-2’
    (‘mouse-yank-primary’) where you want to insert it.  *Note Mouse
    Commands::.

should mention how to use C-y to insert it if one is not happy being
forced to use the mouse.

Anyway these sections are describing somethings that have unfortunately
grown very complex, so normal users have little hope of understanding
them fully.

emacs-version "26.3"

bug#41857: Clarify browser / emacs kill-ring interaction more

[Lars Ingebrigtsen]

積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni@jidanni.org> writes:

> (info "(emacs) Primary Selection") says:
>
>        Under X, whenever the region is active (*note Mark::), the text in
>     the region is saved in the primary selection.  This applies regardless
>     of whether the region was made by dragging or clicking the mouse (*note
>     Mouse Commands::), or by keyboard commands (e.g., by typing ‘C-<SPC>’
>     and moving point; *note Setting Mark::).
>
> This isn't clear if it is talking only about actions within emacs, or
> also e.g., actions within a browser.
> Also within a browser we talk about 'highlighting' and 'copying text'.

The Emacs manual talks about Emacs (unless otherwise noted), so I don't
think there's anything to clarify here.

> And, (info "(emacs) Clipboard")'s
>
>        Yank commands, such as ‘C-y’ (‘yank’), also use the clipboard.  If
>     another application “owns” the clipboard—i.e., if you cut or copied text
>     there more recently than your last kill command in Emacs—then Emacs
>     yanks from the clipboard instead of the kill ring.
>
> should mention when this does not apply.

I think it does apply?

> And (info "(emacs) Primary Selection")
>
>        To insert the primary selection into an Emacs buffer, click ‘mouse-2’
>     (‘mouse-yank-primary’) where you want to insert it.  *Note Mouse
>     Commands::.
>
> should mention how to use C-y to insert it if one is not happy being
> forced to use the mouse.

I've added this to Emacs 28.

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   bloggy blog: http://lars.ingebrigtsen.no