bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Glenn Morris]

Package: emacs

I added:

  (coding . utf-8)

to the change-log-mode section in the Emacs .dir-locals.el file, then did

 ./src/emacs -Q lisp/ChangeLog.1

The file was opened in undecided-unix. I was hoping to be able to
remove the "coding: utf-8" that many of the Emacs ChangeLog files
(but not that particular example) have.

It seems `find-auto-coding' handles the coding: cookie independently
of the local-variables mechanism. It would be nice if it would check
for a directory-local coding if no file-local setting is found.

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Eli Zaretskii]

> From: Glenn Morris <rgm@gnu.org>
> Date: Wed, 06 Oct 2010 15:39:29 -0400
> Cc: 
> 
> Package: emacs
> 
> I added:
> 
>   (coding . utf-8)
> 
> to the change-log-mode section in the Emacs .dir-locals.el file, then did
> 
>  ./src/emacs -Q lisp/ChangeLog.1
> 
> The file was opened in undecided-unix. I was hoping to be able to
> remove the "coding: utf-8" that many of the Emacs ChangeLog files
> (but not that particular example) have.

Independently of the potential bug, why is it a good idea to have such
a setting in the Emacs tree?  There are some files for which this will
do the wrong thing.

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Glenn Morris]

Eli Zaretskii wrote:

> Independently of the potential bug, why is it a good idea to have such
> a setting in the Emacs tree?  There are some files for which this will
> do the wrong thing.

It will?
There are 59 ChangeLog* files in the Emacs tree.
50 have a coding: cookie.
All but one of those (an old Gnus ChangeLog) use utf-8.
I assume people just forget to add it to the other 9.

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Eli Zaretskii]

> Cc: 7169@debbugs.gnu.org
> From: Glenn Morris <rgm@gnu.org>
> Date: Wed, 06 Oct 2010 17:00:02 -0400
> 
> Eli Zaretskii wrote:
> 
> > Independently of the potential bug, why is it a good idea to have such
> > a setting in the Emacs tree?  There are some files for which this will
> > do the wrong thing.
> 
> It will?
> There are 59 ChangeLog* files in the Emacs tree.
> 50 have a coding: cookie.
> All but one of those (an old Gnus ChangeLog) use utf-8.

I wasn't talking about ChangeLog files.  Unless I misunderstand, your
addition will be in effect with any file in the tree.

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Glenn Morris]

Eli Zaretskii wrote:

> I wasn't talking about ChangeLog files.  Unless I misunderstand, your
> addition will be in effect with any file in the tree.

I wrote:

> I added:
>
>   (coding . utf-8)
>
> to the change-log-mode section in the Emacs .dir-locals.el file
         ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
So like the settings for bug-reference-url-format etc, it would only
apply to ChangeLog files.

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Glenn Morris]

Maybe it is impossible to do, because find-auto-coding doesn't yet
know the mode when it runs. I don't know, that's why this is a bug
report.

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Stefan Monnier]

>> I added:
>> (coding . utf-8)
>> to the change-log-mode section in the Emacs .dir-locals.el file, then did
>> 
>> ./src/emacs -Q lisp/ChangeLog.1
>> 
>> The file was opened in undecided-unix. I was hoping to be able to
>> remove the "coding: utf-8" that many of the Emacs ChangeLog files
>> (but not that particular example) have.

> Independently of the potential bug, why is it a good idea to have such
> a setting in the Emacs tree?  There are some files for which this will
> do the wrong thing.

FWIW, I think such a setting should be provided for all Emacs files
rather than just for change-log-mode ones.  This would mean "in the
absence of a coding tag in the file, use utf-8", which seems like it
can only be better than the current "in the absence of a coding tag in
the file, use whatever the user happens to prefer".


        Stefan

bug#7169: cannot specify coding via dir-locals

[Eli Zaretskii]

> Cc: 7169@debbugs.gnu.org
> From: Glenn Morris <rgm@gnu.org>
> Date: Thu, 07 Oct 2010 00:18:22 -0400
> 
> > I added:
> >
> >   (coding . utf-8)
> >
> > to the change-log-mode section in the Emacs .dir-locals.el file
>          ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Sorry.