Re: Emacs contributions, C and Lisp

[Jambunathan K <kjambunathan@gmail.com>]

Richard Stallman <rms@gnu.org> writes:

> For instance, suppose a feature is implemented to use CEDET.

If I look back at some of David Engster's post I realize that

1. CEDET has a C++ parser.  (Not of the hand-written sort that can do
   pure magic but of some down-to-earth variety that gets the job done.)

2. It has some modules that interfaces with Clang.

3. For it's completion features to improve, it's "database" support has
   to improve.

I would like to hear some specifics that a GSoC-like student would be
excited to hear about.

I am interested in pure technicalities and some posts or articles that
articulate the hole and some starting points for how that hole may be
filled.

> If no one would ever use that option

IME, there are two sorts of programmers.

1. Those who write entire modules.
   
2. Those who iherit codebases and try to gain insights in to it
   (invariably when the original authors have moved on to other
   contracts or companies.)

The programmers of first variety have little use for refactoring tools.
They can do better than what a refactoring tool can do or they do some
thing that refactoring things can never hope to do.

The programmers of the second sort - the corporate programmers - often
have access to commercial editors - superior to Emacs for task at hand -
with site-wide licenses.  (i.e., Emacs is virtually non-existent save
for minor exceptions.)

There are programmers who neither fall squarely in (1) or (2) but
vaguely fall close to the (2)-end of the spectrum.

I have always felt that Emacs felt seriously short in the "code insight"
space.  Lots of adhoc tools here and there, but anything which can be
"solely relied upon" for the particularly situation in.

In short, I want to see some improvements in CEDET.  I may even take up
some of the improvements on my own shoulders.