Re: Options menu

[storm@cua.dk (Kim F. Storm)]

David Kastrup <dak@gnu.org> writes:

>> OPTIONS
>> ======================================
>>    Customize Emacs                   >
>> --------------------------------------
>>    Language Environment (Mule)       >
>>    Set Font/fontset
>> --------------------------------------
>
> I don't think putting submenus at the top is a good idea, since the
> usual menu semantics imply that some of those menus tend to open in
> the process of trying to select options below them.

But the point of the rearrange is that those things are something
you use more often than the "one shot" options below it.  How
often do you toggle Syntax Highlighting?

> Customization menus tend to be at the bottom of menu stacks, anyway,
> for almost all applications I know.

I know, but on the Edit menu, or Tools menu -- and is called Options
or Preferences ... so it's still difficult to find.  Putting it at
the top of Options make it EASY to find.

>> [] Truncate Long Lines in this Buffer
>> [] Word Wrap in Text Modes
>> [] Case-insensitive Search
>> [] C-x/C-c/C-v cut-and-paste (CUA)
>
> The order of the above is completely arbitrary.  

Agree -- but it is the current order, I just don't have a better
proposal.

>> [] Use Directory Names in Buffer Names
>
> Looks like a candidate for "Appearance".  Appearance could be
> structured into overall appearance (frame stuff, cursor, menubar,
> toolbar, speedbar) and detailed appearance (dirnames in buffers, file
> name shadow, syntax highlighting).

I agree this would be a significant enhancement.

>
>> [] Save Places in Files between Sessions
>> [] Automatic File De/compression
>
> I'd remove the latter point from the menus and enable it by default.

Ok with me.

>
>> --------------------------------------
>> [] Enter Debugger on Error
>> [] Enter Debugger on Quit/C-g
>> --------------------------------------
>
> Not sure whether this is a good idea to put in a user menu.  It makes
> it somewhat easier to give instructions for generating backtraces in
> the case of tracking down a bug.  But it also is clutter.

For me, those are really the only options that I use regularly,
so removing them from Options may be ok if they are moved to
some other menu.

Perhaps they would fit better on the Help menu -- then then
you cannot save them (but do you really want to do that?)
I never want to save them, and was actually surprised to see
that they _are_ saved by "Save Options"!!!


>
>> Personally, I would also like to rename "Show/Hide" to "Appearence"
>> and move "Blinking Cursor" under that heading, but that's less
>> important.
>
> I think now that Emacs has a --no-blinking-cursor command line option
> that is also given by --help, those people that can't stand the cursor
> long enough to configure it off have a reasonable escape path.  So I'd
> move the Blinking Cursor to Appearance.  We should do what is
> reasonably possible to reduce clutter.

Agree.