From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Kevin Rodgers Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.help Subject: Re: variable's documentation string Date: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:22:34 -0600 Message-ID: References: <67ca21fb-4953-4699-b190-df74a1035228@r36g2000vbn.googlegroups.com> <2c6889fe-6935-41d6-8a8e-2b6a07761cd7@j19g2000vbp.googlegroups.com> <7cws6vjsug.fsf@pbourguignon.anevia.com> <0a97f5cb-d434-4014-ba0b-dd5126095fbf@f10g2000vbf.googlegroups.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1246352303 31179 80.91.229.12 (30 Jun 2009 08:58:23 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:58:23 +0000 (UTC) To: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org Original-X-From: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Tue Jun 30 10:58:16 2009 Return-path: Envelope-to: geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.50) id 1MLZAN-0001U4-8O for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 10:58:16 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1]:32893 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1MLZAM-0003pI-Qa for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:58:14 -0400 Original-Received: from mailman by lists.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1MLWjx-0007Rl-FT for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:22:49 -0400 Original-Received: from exim by lists.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1MLWjr-0007PU-Pf for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:22:48 -0400 Original-Received: from [199.232.76.173] (port=47325 helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1MLWjr-0007PN-Jr for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:22:43 -0400 Original-Received: from main.gmane.org ([80.91.229.2]:49168 helo=ciao.gmane.org) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtps (TLS-1.0:RSA_AES_256_CBC_SHA1:32) (Exim 4.60) (envelope-from ) id 1MLWjr-0006CP-4g for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:22:43 -0400 Original-Received: from list by ciao.gmane.org with local (Exim 4.43) id 1MLWjl-0002vZ-Bc for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 06:22:37 +0000 Original-Received: from c-67-190-36-32.hsd1.co.comcast.net ([67.190.36.32]) by main.gmane.org with esmtp (Gmexim 0.1 (Debian)) id 1AlnuQ-0007hv-00 for ; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 06:22:37 +0000 Original-Received: from kevin.d.rodgers by c-67-190-36-32.hsd1.co.comcast.net with local (Gmexim 0.1 (Debian)) id 1AlnuQ-0007hv-00 for ; Tue, 30 Jun 2009 06:22:37 +0000 X-Injected-Via-Gmane: http://gmane.org/ Original-Lines: 30 Original-X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org X-Gmane-NNTP-Posting-Host: c-67-190-36-32.hsd1.co.comcast.net User-Agent: Thunderbird 2.0.0.22 (Macintosh/20090605) In-Reply-To: <0a97f5cb-d434-4014-ba0b-dd5126095fbf@f10g2000vbf.googlegroups.com> X-detected-operating-system: by monty-python.gnu.org: GNU/Linux 2.6, seldom 2.4 (older, 4) X-Mailman-Approved-At: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:55:24 -0400 X-BeenThere: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: Users list for the GNU Emacs text editor List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.help:65672 Archived-At: TheFlyingDutchman wrote: >> Here, it works well: >> >> (defvar myVar 2 "This is the documentation string") ; C-x C-e >> (documentation-property 'myVar 'variable-documentation) ; C-x C-e >> --> "This is the documentation string" > > > Thanks Pascal! You lead me to the error. When I typed (documentation- > property 'some_variable 'variable-documentation) and evaluated it, it > worked. I then compared it to the equivalent part of the message > statement that I was using, and after 15 seconds of looking at it I > realized that I had incorrectly used a dash, instead of an underscore > for the variable name in the documentation-property function call. I > will have to remember to post the exact code I am using and not type > in something equivalent. But I would have expected to have gotten an > error because the symbol-name that I erroneously typed did not exist. > In fact, I would prefer it gave an error to returning nil. That's not the way Lisp works. When the form 'some_variable was read, the symbol was created (with a void value, void function, and nil property list). If you evaluate (symbol-value 'some_variable) or (symbol-function 'some_variable), you'll get an error. But not (symbol-plist 'some_variable). -- Kevin Rodgers Denver, Colorado, USA