Re: Somehow strange behaviour of `mark-sexp'

[Thorsten Jolitz <tjolitz@gmail.com>]

Barry Margolin <barmar@alum.mit.edu> writes:

> In article <mailman.14952.1392303843.10748.help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org>,
>  Thorsten Jolitz <tjolitz@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi List, 
>> 
>> when doing 'C-h v mark-sexp' I see this (excerpt):
>> 
>> ,-----------------------------------------------------------------
>> | mark-sexp is an interactive compiled Lisp function in `lisp.el'.
>> | 
>> | It is bound to C-M-@, C-M-SPC.
>> `-----------------------------------------------------------------
>> 
>> Now, moving point to the beginning of C-M-@ and calling ` mark-sexp',
>> 
>> ,-----
>> | C-M-
>> `-----
>> 
>> is marked. When moving point to the @ at the end of C-M-@ and calling
>> `mark-sexp',
>> 
>> ,-----------
>> | @, C-M-SPC
>> `-----------
>> 
>> is marked, which I found a bit counter-intuitive.
>> 
>> PS 1
>> 
>> `forward-sexp' acts like that too
>> 
>> PS 2
>> 
>> I'm working on the console
>
> @, is part of backquote syntax, it unquotes the sexp following it. So it 
> thinks @, C-M-SPC is @, unquoting the variable C-M-SPC, and that's a 
> sexp.

Ok, I see. 


> I'm not sure why you would expect sensible behavior from a command 
> intended for dealing with Lisp code in the *Help* buffer, which is just 
> plain text.

not necessarily sensible behaviour, but mark-sexp works quite well on
all kinds of "things at point", so I probably like its useful behaviour
even in contexts outside its original scope. 

-- 
cheers,
Thorsten