From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Bob Rogers Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: C-x C-v considered harmful Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 21:18:38 -0400 Message-ID: <19020.2798.523236.406366@rgr.rgrjr.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1246497542 2496 80.91.229.12 (2 Jul 2009 01:19:02 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Thu, 2 Jul 2009 01:19:02 +0000 (UTC) To: emacs-devel@gnu.org Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Thu Jul 02 03:18:55 2009 Return-path: Envelope-to: ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.50) id 1MMAwx-00088N-Bm for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Thu, 02 Jul 2009 03:18:55 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1]:52453 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1MMAww-00027x-Op for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:18:54 -0400 Original-Received: from mailman by lists.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1MMAwq-00027s-S1 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:18:48 -0400 Original-Received: from exim by lists.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1MMAwl-00027H-9c for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:18:47 -0400 Original-Received: from [199.232.76.173] (port=35447 helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1MMAwl-00027E-2w for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:18:43 -0400 Original-Received: from rgrjr.com ([216.146.47.5]:37561) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.60) (envelope-from ) id 1MMAwk-0000RL-IJ for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:18:42 -0400 Original-Received: from rgrjr.dyndns.org (c-66-30-196-77.hsd1.ma.comcast.net [66.30.196.77]) by rgrjr.com (Postfix on CentOS) with ESMTP id 676BB16011B for ; Thu, 2 Jul 2009 01:18:41 +0000 (UTC) Original-Received: (qmail 21134 invoked by uid 89); 2 Jul 2009 01:18:40 -0000 Original-Received: from unknown (HELO rgr.rgrjr.com) (192.168.57.1) by home with SMTP; 2 Jul 2009 01:18:40 -0000 Original-Received: by rgr.rgrjr.com (Postfix, from userid 500) id 168704862E; Wed, 1 Jul 2009 21:18:38 -0400 (EDT) X-Mailer: VM viewmail-600 under 23.1.50.1 (i686-pc-linux-gnu) X-detected-operating-system: by monty-python.gnu.org: GNU/Linux 2.6 (newer, 3) X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:111885 Archived-At: I have finally discovered what has been making my *shell* buffers disappear mysteriously from time to time. It's because I often invoke vc-dir in the *shell* buffer, in order to take the directory default from there, but sometimes type "C-x C-v d RET" instead -- too quickly to realize that I haven't let go of the Ctrl key fast enough. So instead of vc-dir, I end up in an empty buffer named "d", and *shell* is gone for good. IMHO, the "C-x C-v" binding to find-alternate-file makes it much too easy to typo oneself into information loss. Possible solutions: 1. Bind find-alternate-file to something different. (Probably too late for that.) 2. Add a "[Confirm]" step if nonexistent, as for selecting files or buffers with confirm-nonexistent-file-or-buffer set to t. (Oops; that's probably too controversial.) 3. Do not bind find-alternate-file to anything at all. I've adopted the third solution locally, so I will not kick up a fuss if people want to keep the status quo. But I think it's much less user- hostile to let those who are knowledgeable enough to want the feature enable it for themselves, than to let buffers to disappear mysteriously on the unwary. -- Bob Rogers http://www.rgrjr.com/