From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: main.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: "Robert J. Chassell" Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Modes: major, minor, context specific Date: Fri, 6 Sep 2002 11:57:28 +0000 (UTC) Sender: emacs-devel-admin@gnu.org Message-ID: References: <20020822.173129.01368056.Takaaki.Ota@am.sony.com> <200208250525.g7P5PfH11882@wijiji.santafe.edu> <5x3ct2y2nr.fsf@kfs2.cua.dk> <20020830.124308.81460907.Takaaki.Ota@am.sony.com> <5xelcc3054.fsf@kfs2.cua.dk> Reply-To: bob@rattlesnake.com NNTP-Posting-Host: localhost.gmane.org X-Trace: main.gmane.org 1031313472 9391 127.0.0.1 (6 Sep 2002 11:57:52 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@main.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Fri, 6 Sep 2002 11:57:52 +0000 (UTC) Return-path: Original-Received: from quimby.gnus.org ([80.91.224.244]) by main.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 3.35 #1 (Debian)) id 17nHkF-0002RK-00 for ; Fri, 06 Sep 2002 13:57:51 +0200 Original-Received: from monty-python.gnu.org ([199.232.76.173]) by quimby.gnus.org with esmtp (Exim 3.12 #1 (Debian)) id 17nIKO-0006en-00 for ; Fri, 06 Sep 2002 14:35:12 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1] helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.10) id 17nHlr-00047R-00; Fri, 06 Sep 2002 07:59:31 -0400 Original-Received: from list by monty-python.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.10) id 17nHjy-000466-00 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Fri, 06 Sep 2002 07:57:34 -0400 Original-Received: from mail by monty-python.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.10) id 17nHjv-00045V-00 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Fri, 06 Sep 2002 07:57:33 -0400 Original-Received: from megalith.rattlesnake.com ([140.186.114.245] helo=localhost) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.10) id 17nHju-00044r-00 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Fri, 06 Sep 2002 07:57:31 -0400 Original-Received: by rattlesnake.com via sendmail from stdin id (Debian Smail3.2.0.114) Fri, 6 Sep 2002 11:57:28 +0000 (UTC) Original-To: emacs-devel@gnu.org Errors-To: emacs-devel-admin@gnu.org X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.0.11 Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: Emacs development discussions. List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Xref: main.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:7619 X-Report-Spam: http://spam.gmane.org/gmane.emacs.devel:7619 It turns out that the concept of `modes' provides a useful tool for thinking about Emacs user interfaces: Major mode: topic related mode, such as whether you are reading email or editing Fortran Minor mode: user-interface related mode, such as whether you want or do not want auto-fill, provided at a less general level than the difference between VI and Emacs Context Specific Minor mode: a user-interface related mode for a particular region that is different in some regular way from the rest of the buffer, such as an entry for a table, a rectangle, or a mathematical expression The VI - Emacs difference: among other things, an interface mode difference that is so basic it is not called a difference in `modes': * VI presumes the user will write a fair amount in one go (say a paragraph or an expression) and then edit * Emacs presumes the user will edit every word or two