RE: [External] : Re: Propose to add setup-wizard.el to ELPA

[Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com>]

> > > What you really want is plain Emacs without customizations for new
> > > users. New users will not customize it anyway.
> >
> > ??? Why wouldn't new users customize Emacs?  Customization is
> > generally one of the first things I do in any new program I start
> > using.
> 
> You are advanced computer user.
> 
> New user will most probably not customize anything. At that point when
> user start customizing software, user converts from "completely new
> user" to "not any more so new user", at least.

FWIW, I agree with Eli, here.  I don't think
a proclivity to customize is related to how
advanced a user is (with computers or in any
other way).

Different users are different, of course.
And maybe the very first time a user opens
an app s?he might not try to customize it.

But I think that many users do consider
customization immediately, or almost
immediately.  They open the app and think
to themselves "I wish this were lighter",
or "I'd prefer to have that on the left",
or "That's too small for me."

This could depend on what one is used to
(and thus might want to replicate), or on
personality, or on any number of other
things.  But I'd bet that many users do
want to customize some things at the outset.

Whether they actually try to do so is a
different question.  And that can depend on
things like (a) how much they're willing to
give the new app a chance on its own terms,
and (b) how easy they perceive customization
to be in the new app.

With GNU Emacs it's very easy to customize
some things that are not usually so easy
(and may not even be possible to customize)
in other apps.  Emacs can be both a dream
and a rabbit hole for a customize-hobbyist. ;-)

I'd also bet that many (most?) Emacs users
who eventually get more interested in using
Emacs Lisp started down that road by making
simple customization changes to their Emacs
experience.  Customizing can be a gateway
drug to an Elisp lifetime habit. ;-)