Re: request: make-frame-visible hook

[John J Foerch <jjfoerch@earthlink.net>]

Richard M Stallman <rms@gnu.org> writes:
>       I have used the emacs irc clients Circe and Erc, which both provide
>     modes to track activity in hidden irc buffers.  "Hidden" may mean a
>     buffer that is not visible in any frame, or a buffer shown in a
>     non-visible frame.  The irc channels with new activity are indicated in
>     the mode-line.  Switching to a tracked buffer removes that buffer's
>     indicator from the mode-line.
>
> I don't think I would add an Emacs feature for the sake of this.
> However, you might be able to get more or less the same result
> by triggering off the arrival of output from a process or connection
> and seeing which IRC buffers are currently displayed.


  What you describe is implemented in both of the irc clients I
mentioned.  They update the mode-line tracking indicator when new data
arrives from the process, but this is not often enough, and it is the
situation I would like to improve upon.  A typical case for the new
feature would be as follows:

  I have an emacs frame open on workspace 1, and my mode-line indicates
that there is activity in an irc channel.  I switch to workspace 2,
where I have a frame showing the active irc channel.  Without the
ability to use the make-frame-visible event, the mode-line tracking
indicator will continue to show that buffer, possibly for minutes until
more data comes from the process.  If I switch back to workspace 1, and
the tracking indicator still has not been updated, I cannot then know
when the next new data arrives from the process, because the indicator
is now falsely on, though I have already read the buffer.

  I guess I am not sure what the point of having a make-frame-visible
event is, if there can only be one handler on it.

  Thank you for your time.  I hope you will reconsider.

-- 
John Foerch