From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail From: Eli Zaretskii Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: Some developement questions Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2018 09:21:58 +0300 Message-ID: <83sh3cfb3t.fsf@gnu.org> References: <444779489.8504194.1534538988289.ref@mail.yahoo.com> <444779489.8504194.1534538988289@mail.yahoo.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: blaine.gmane.org X-Trace: blaine.gmane.org 1534573251 21025 195.159.176.226 (18 Aug 2018 06:20:51 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@blaine.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2018 06:20:51 +0000 (UTC) Cc: emacs-devel@gnu.org To: Ergus Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Sat Aug 18 08:20:47 2018 Return-path: Envelope-to: ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([208.118.235.17]) by blaine.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.84_2) (envelope-from ) id 1fqubO-0005H7-AK for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Sat, 18 Aug 2018 08:20:46 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([::1]:37780 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1fqudT-00024J-6L for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:22:55 -0400 Original-Received: from eggs.gnu.org ([2001:4830:134:3::10]:33656) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1fqucp-000248-P8 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:22:16 -0400 Original-Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1fquch-0000zU-5y for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:22:14 -0400 Original-Received: from fencepost.gnu.org ([2001:4830:134:3::e]:56536) by eggs.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1fquch-0000zM-1k; Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:22:07 -0400 Original-Received: from [176.228.60.248] (port=3069 helo=home-c4e4a596f7) by fencepost.gnu.org with esmtpsa (TLS1.2:RSA_AES_256_CBC_SHA1:256) (Exim 4.82) (envelope-from ) id 1fqucg-0002jX-MQ; Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:22:07 -0400 In-reply-to: <444779489.8504194.1534538988289@mail.yahoo.com> (message from Ergus on Fri, 17 Aug 2018 20:49:48 +0000 (UTC)) X-detected-operating-system: by eggs.gnu.org: GNU/Linux 2.2.x-3.x [generic] X-Received-From: 2001:4830:134:3::e X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.21 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Original-Sender: "Emacs-devel" Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:228652 Archived-At: > Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2018 20:49:48 +0000 (UTC) > From: Ergus > Cc: emacs-devel@gnu.org > > I just suggest a cleanup/deletion/ deprecation advice in Elpa/Melpa. It is not a programming suggestion, but > almost a logistical one. Because for new users it is confusing which package to install and the suggestions in > the Wiki are usually the older options. So basically I have the feeling we have a volume of packages > unmaintainable for the number of active developers I see. For example most of the documentation suggests > to use smex while it is abandoned and the "successor" is amx fully functional and maintained. New users will > install smex facing the already solved bugs. But also some new packages will use the old one for new > purposes. Younger people need to know emacs from scratch as they grow with other completely different > tools. This is a volunteer project. Someone with motivation and time on their hands should (and is welcome to) start a project of better and more up-to-date documentation of available packages. One possible place to let users access this is when they use package.el to browse the list of available packages and decide what they want to install. > >Emacs is much more flexible, and different people have different > >needs. > > > Yes, but someone who opens emacs for the first time will open it to edit text and very probably to program, he > should have color preferences and for sure he doesn't know how to add packages and the elpa repository > (maybe don't even know about about something called elpa), so, the most basic customization options. If > comes from vim/nano/gedit he will need some assistance that emacs can bring (not only the tutorial, but > evile, bindkeys), but he don't know how get there. Maybe he prefers to use always the terminal version instead > of the graphical one, or he will read the manual and something keybinds doesn't work, and blame emacs > when tmux was the guilty. Exactly my point: you have just enumerated at least 3 different classes of users, and the solution is different for every one of them. Finding a way of being friendly to each class is the problem to solve. One possible solution could be groups of Custom options that are likely to be relevant to each class of users, and writing customization commands that target each class. Patches are welcome. > BTW: Whats the best documentation (from > scratch) to learn elisp and the emacs developement environment? Do you have anything like for example: > "The Linux Programming Interface" from "Michael Kerrisk" but for Emacs? Take a look at Introduction to Programming in Emacs Lisp, it comes with Emacs.