From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Emanuel Berg Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.help Subject: shell-like Emacs CLI, and my Usenet behaviour Date: Sun, 18 Aug 2013 21:27:42 +0200 Organization: Aioe.org NNTP Server Message-ID: <87eh9qpznc.fsf@nl106-137-194.student.uu.se> NNTP-Posting-Host: plane.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1376854218 6205 80.91.229.3 (18 Aug 2013 19:30:18 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Sun, 18 Aug 2013 19:30:18 +0000 (UTC) To: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org Original-X-From: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Sun Aug 18 21:30:21 2013 Return-path: Envelope-to: geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([208.118.235.17]) by plane.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1VB8g8-00023t-Oq for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Sun, 18 Aug 2013 21:30:20 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([::1]:39810 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1VB8g8-0007OA-CU for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Sun, 18 Aug 2013 15:30:20 -0400 Original-Path: usenet.stanford.edu!news.kjsl.com!feeder.erje.net!eu.feeder.erje.net!newsfeed.datemas.de!rt.uk.eu.org!aioe.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail Original-Newsgroups: gnu.emacs.help Original-Lines: 67 Original-NNTP-Posting-Host: FplVx5MqBzlFp1u9bZOXWQ.user.speranza.aioe.org Original-X-Complaints-To: abuse@aioe.org User-Agent: Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/23.4 (gnu/linux) X-Notice: Filtered by postfilter v. 0.8.2 Cancel-Lock: sha1:kAi6us1Pu3M5sYkwWQFVElCPijE= Original-Xref: usenet.stanford.edu gnu.emacs.help:200697 X-BeenThere: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.14 Precedence: list List-Id: Users list for the GNU Emacs text editor List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Original-Sender: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.help:92964 Archived-At: After getting into several firefights, not just here but all over Usenet, I have decided to change my behaviour. So it happened, that my laptop (an old warhorse Dell Inspiron 1300), fell out of my backpack, and broke (but I salvaged the HDD), and I am a non-religious, "rational" believer in karma, so I interpreted this as a sign that I should change my behaviour, and not be so easily provoked, or as confrontational/high-energy in style. But, not dwelling on the past, I have been thinking if not Emacs would benefit from a shell-like CLI, instead of hammering the RET between each stage? Is this a new idea or did anyone do work on it? There are several advantages: For a simple example, the advantage is speed, less typing, and no visual "reorient" after the RET. In a shell: man emacs RET In Emacs: M-x man RET emacs RET For a long, complicated command, apart from the advantages mentioned, it is often the case you are benefited from seeing the options, the previous arguments, and the tool name, when you type the command - you don't get lost as in Emacs - wait... what am I doing? what did I do one second ago? The visual memory doesn't work with bits and pieces. To verify this, take a look at (the shell command) cp and then the option -r compare this to: cp -r The difference is stunning! What's more, for complicated commands with options and/or arguments, it is easy to do a mistake. With C-p in zsh, you get the last command (the entire command), and you can use the lightning-fast Emacs-style cursor movement keystrokes to get to the disfunctional part, and correct it. Although I don't habitually do complicated commands in Emacs, because I bind it to functions, aliases, and keystrokes, *sometimes* I do, and then I am frustrated the Emacs CLI isn't as flexible as the shell's. Putting it the other way around, are there any advantages to the Emacs way, or is it the way it is because of practical considerations when it was implemented? -- Emanuel Berg - programmer (hire me! CV below) computer projects: http://user.it.uu.se/~embe8573 internet activity: http://home.student.uu.se/embe8573