Re: RFC: Adding BBDB to Emacs core

[Michael Welsh Duggan <mwd@md5i.com>]

phillip.lord@russet.org.uk (Phillip Lord) writes:

> This version:
>
> http://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/emacs.git/log/?h=elparized-core
>
> for example, just pulls out parts of ELPA using git magic, and copies
> the files into core. Simple, straight-forward and it works. But,
> ultimately, will it make maintaining core more easy? In the end, I think
> not, because it is essentially an ad-hoc way of tying together emacs.git
> and elpa.git.
>
>
> This version:
>
> http://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/emacs.git/log/?h=feature/integrated-elpa
>
> uses package.el during the build process of Emacs, so that ELPA packages
> could be added as packages. It requires more work. In the end, my own
> feeling is that this is the right way. We could dramatically slim down
> core Emacs to be enough to run package.el. The release would then be
> "core plus what ever packages we think are important at the time".
>
> This would decrease the complexity of the emacs git. But it might
> increase the complexity of the release process, since you'd be dependent
> on multiple other packages. I think ELPA and package.el need
> to be able to cope with multiple versions of the same package,
> supporting different versions of Emacs for this to work.

I would support any method that does _not_ require a working internet
connection in order to install packages.  I have had to work on Emacs in
many, many places that have limited or non-existent network connections.
The ability to "move a package to external medium," then "install from
medium as a 'package' maintained by package-mode" would be very nice to
have.

This may not actually have anything to do with the text I quoted, but I
would like to put it out there anyway, just so it is in the back of
implementers' minds.

-- 
Michael Welsh Duggan
(md5i@md5i.com)