From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Nick Roberts Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: Incompatible change without "warning" Date: Wed, 27 Apr 2005 09:35:22 +1200 Message-ID: <17006.46106.998776.20140@farnswood.snap.net.nz> References: <16997.28602.876638.54728@farnswood.snap.net.nz> <16998.58339.710430.454702@farnswood.snap.net.nz> <17000.13278.865098.49756@farnswood.snap.net.nz> <17006.1736.406738.121947@farnswood.snap.net.nz> NNTP-Posting-Host: main.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: sea.gmane.org 1114553112 10491 80.91.229.2 (26 Apr 2005 22:05:12 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@sea.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 26 Apr 2005 22:05:12 +0000 (UTC) Cc: rms@gnu.org, emacs-devel@gnu.org Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Wed Apr 27 00:05:08 2005 Return-path: Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by ciao.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1DQY9J-00008a-75 for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Wed, 27 Apr 2005 00:03:21 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1] helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1DQYF6-0006qs-Ug for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Tue, 26 Apr 2005 18:09:20 -0400 Original-Received: from mailman by lists.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1DQY7w-0002US-39 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Tue, 26 Apr 2005 18:01:56 -0400 Original-Received: from exim by lists.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1DQY7s-0002RD-0T for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Tue, 26 Apr 2005 18:01:55 -0400 Original-Received: from [199.232.76.173] (helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1DQY7r-0008EI-O9 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Tue, 26 Apr 2005 18:01:51 -0400 Original-Received: from [202.37.101.8] (helo=viper.snap.net.nz) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.34) id 1DQXlN-0001y8-3h; Tue, 26 Apr 2005 17:38:37 -0400 Original-Received: from farnswood.snap.net.nz (p75-tnt1.snap.net.nz [202.124.110.75]) by viper.snap.net.nz (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8E15F4AB235; Wed, 27 Apr 2005 09:34:34 +1200 (NZST) Original-Received: by farnswood.snap.net.nz (Postfix, from userid 501) id 9DA1362A99; Tue, 26 Apr 2005 22:35:24 +0100 (BST) Original-To: Stefan Monnier In-Reply-To: X-Mailer: VM 7.19 under Emacs 22.0.50.21 X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:36424 X-Report-Spam: http://spam.gmane.org/gmane.emacs.devel:36424 > > The current documentation for these related functions uses different > > argument names which I think is confusing: > > I don't think it's confusing: > - `defvaralias' creates a variable alias. > Neither of the two variables is known to be "old" or "new" or "obsolete". > One is the "base", the other is the "alias". > - define-obsolete-variable-alias OTOH just *uses* defvaralias in one specific > context (in order to preserve backward compatibility witha now obsolete > variable), so the names can be more specific. > > > - Function: defvaralias variable new &optional docstring > > That would sound wrong to me: the documentation should generally refer to > what a function *does*, not to how the function is used. Yes, you're right - I've been too narrow in my thinking. However, my first point was about using the same argument names in the manual and the documentation string. Would this not generally be a good idea? Nick